Game On & Good Luck!
by RinoaDestiny
Summary: Kyo Kusanagi and Iori Yagami, life-long rivals and reluctant allies, play games together. Sometimes, there's a crowd (or not). Whether or not the game gets played to completion, they try to kill each other, or the place goes up in flames is anyone's guess. [Collaboration fanfic between Nanomemes (Team Murder firebois) & RinoaDestiny (Team Chill). Alternating chapters b/t the two.]
1. Chap 1 - Nanomemes - Counterstrike

_So, uh. Hi guys. It's nano. This is a collab piece with Rinoa. It's just gonna be slice of life stuff._

 _So Team Murder (my version of Kyo and Iori) are super different from Rin's, and I thought it'd be fun to compare and contrast the two in a series of character interactions. This was inspired by her one fic about the Okami game. (maybe she'll link it here, but otherwise go find it on her profile)_

 _Since double-posting is against policy,_

* * *

Whoop whoop. Videojuegos times boiiis.

I played like 15 hours of CS:GO once, and I know it's not played on consoles, but whatever. Leave me alone.

* * *

"Oy, nutballs, I heard you tried to kill each other yesterday."

 _*Olay, nutball. I heard you try to kill each other yesterday*_

A woman's automated voice translated the message from the cellphone's speakers. At the sound of his native language, Kyo turned to frown. Iori took the opportunity to shove his rival away and throw a punch. He missed.

" _It's not my fault Yagami's lungs are ass."_

"Fuck you… _(hic)_ "

Clark snorted as he observed the two sacred treasures proceed to aggressively poke and snarl at each other. They looked like a couple of aggressive chihuahuas who really wanted to fight, but were too scared to actually make contact. They were dressed in medical scrubs and Iori was back on his IV after the drowning incident. His diaphragm was all sorts of fucked from the nerve gas, and he'd been subject to hour-long bouts of hiccups. Apparently the pralidoxime had worked wonders, and in the space of a couple of days, Iori Yagami had gone from a shivering wreck to trying to fistfight the commander.

"The doctors says you need rest. You two need to stop messing around or else the commander's gonna flip."

" _(hic)..._ He won't get me aga- _(hic)..._ I'll- _(hic)..._ "

Clark rolled his eyes and pocketed his phone. He was toting one of Ralf's duffel bags, which he had borrowed for this purpose. It was stuffed with about thirty different shooting games and gaming console. Clark didn't play games too much. He spent a lot of time shooting in real life, and didn't find much enjoyment with the virtual version of his job. However, at this point, he was willing to try anything to get some peace and quiet around the compound. He needed these kids to shut up and stop killing each other for the sake of his, and his men's, sanity. Kyo was pretty loud, but _Iori… ho~oly shit._

"If you can't beat me, don't think you can beat the commander."

" _(hic)..._ Wanna fig- _(hic)_... Clark? I'll rip your- _(hic)_ "

"My K/D is amazing."

" _(hic)-_?"

* * *

 _They're awful…_

Kyo and Iori were absolutely terrible. They'd killed themselves more times then they've killed anyone else- and this game didn't even let you shoot yourself. They'd managed to mash buttons in such a way that they ended up tossing molotov cocktails at their feet and grenading themselves to death. At least they seemed to be having fun. They've been at it for the past two hours and didn't seem to be slowing down at all.

 _Iori really likes flashbangs huh… I hope he knows they don't actually cause damage… he should really buy a gun as well. Should I help him?_

Ever since Chizuru left, the two sacred treasures have been running wild and nobody in the compound had a moment of peace. They were bored out of their minds, so they resorted to wandering around, harassing people, and trying to murder each other. It was definitely better than the terrorist tactics they'd been pulling earlier, but it was still extremely disruptive.

Honestly, Leona didn't mind too much. While the rest of IKARI steered well clear of the Sacred Treasures, Leona found herself creeping around and peeking through doors and windows to catch a glimpse of her favorite rock idol's daily life. Clark and Ralf found it endlessly funny, and had been teasing her about it ever since Iori had been helicoptered in. Normally, she'd protest, but with Iori around, she had more important things to do.

 _Oh… he killed himself again… he's so happy though… mmm…_

Clark had set them up against computer players and left them to their own devices. Leona had peeked through the door to find two of the world's most powerful fighters busy getting murdered by Counterstrike's easy-level bots.

" _(hic)_ -ammit! This shitty fuc- ( _hic_ )"

"Did you just throw your gun out of the fucking map? You're fucking trash at- _oh fuck!_ "

Kyo's character tossed the bomb across the room, fired wildly at a wall, then in a flurry of button-mashing set himself on fire and died. Leona tried as hard as she could to suppress a smile. They were so bad it was almost comedic. The best part was they somehow thought they were doing pretty well. Kyo had an excuse, he couldn't read English. Iori… _maybe he's just, uh... tired?..._

"HA! FAGGOT!- _(hic)_ "

"Suck my dick bitchass."

Leona took a deep breath and sidled into the room, attempting to make her entrance as quiet as possible. Years of stealth training taught her to walk silently, act silently, _kill_ silently… so she was able approach the back of the couch and unintentionally scared Kyo. He jerked and dropped his controller. Iori began laughing at him then cast his too-wide smile and mirthful gaze at Leona. She felt her heart skip a beat.

"Oh god!… Leona, what are you doing here?... _shit_ "

" _(hic)..._ It's the small Heidern, hehe… pick up a controller and- _(hic)_ get ready to die!"

Exactly what she'd been waiting for.

* * *

Leona had played CS for many years, mostly to keep Ralf company. She hadn't found it particularly fun, especially since Ralf was much better than she was, and online games were simply too troublesome. She was quite good at game compared to normal players, but compared to Kyo and Iori, she was a _god_.

She joined Iori's team and completely destroyed everyone for several rounds. Kyo and Iori continued to kill themselves before the round started, but at this point that was irrelevant. They were hopping around and whooping at Leona apparent genius. Kyo was so amazed he wasn't even angry at being killed. Once Leona pulled three team-sweeps in a row, they absolutely lost their minds. Leona was almost glowing.

"SHE'S COMING! RUN YOUR ASS OUTTA- _(hic)_ THERE KYO!- OOOHHHHH she just knifed you! Haha- _(hic)-_ haha!"

"Oh fuck me! Hehehe! How the hell did you do that?! Oh shit!"

They'd gathered around her, and eventually Leona found herself scrunched up between the two Treasures. The couch was for two people and it was a tight squeeze. Kyo and Iori didn't seem to mind, and Leona sure didn't either. She was pressed up against _Iori Yagami,_ and… _well, He's… he's impressed. Right?... hehe… he's cheering me on._

A few games passed and the guys seemed intent on sharing her CS skills with the world. The three of them joined a matchmaking lobby and they began their first game against real players. There, she put her hard earned skills on full display. She couldn't remember a time where she'd been so concentrated and played so well. Normally games didn't matter to her, but _now..._ by god _._ She would rather die than lose with _him_ watching.

 _I can't fail… no way… Concentrate Leona._

Kyo and Iori died pretty much immediately, so they grabbed headsets, turned on the voice chat and continued to contribute to the team via trash-talking _._

"HAHAHA YOU FUCKING - _(hic)-_ GET FUCKING FUCKED- _(hic)_ "

 _*shut the fuck up, dumbass. You literally blew yourself up before you out of spawn you fucking faggot. Get some skills dumbas-*_

"I'll eat your fucking liver!- _(hic)! LEONA FUCKING KILL HIM!_ "

And she did.

And they went nuts.

* * *

 _Dammit… won't these kids shut up?!_

Earlier that afternoon, Clark had set ' _The Nutballs'_ up with a videogame with the intent on getting some peace and quiet. Instead, they were even louder than usual and also Leona had disappeared. She was probably plastered to a window watching her ' _boyfriend'_ yell at a screen. Youth these days… well, at least Leona seemed to be focused on something other than mission objectives with Iori around. She was a young lady after all, it was healthy to have other pursuits.

Clark just wished her ' _pursuit'_ didn't involve a dangerous psycho-maniac. _Couldn't she have found a normal boy? Hmm… well, she's no normal girl either… but-_

" _ME CAGO EN LAS HOSTIAS PUTAS Y EN-(hic)... 10km A LA REDONDA POR SI HAY UN SANTO - (hic)- SUELTO! AAHHHHH! KILL HIM, FUCKING KILL HIM LEONA!_ "

 _Wow… he sure is creative… wait, did he say Leona?_

Clark frowned. He was on route to the Commander's office down the hall, but decided to check on the Treasures before submitting his report. He took a short detour to the break room and knocked briefly on the door before opening it. He was greeted with the sight of Kyo, Leona and Iori staring intently at the television screen. Iori had already died and was busying himself being a toxic little brat over the mics. Kyo was yelling orders in Japanese and Clark was pretty sure none of the other players had any idea what he was saying. Iori was just blowing out everyone's ears with creative cursing. They didn't even notice Clark had walked in on their gaming party until the door closed behind him.

"Fuuuuuuuuu-ck! Come on Kyo! Run! Get- _you piece of fucking useless garbage!_ "

Kyo yelled something in Japanese and Iori shoved past Leona in an attempt to choke him. Leona ducked neatly to avoid the arm that shot over her head, and continued playing while the two treasures wrestled over her.

Soon enough, the other two random-teammates died and Leona was playing a 5-vs-1 game. Kyo and Iori stopped fighting and went silent. They watched intently as Leona crept around the map like an expert and methodically picked off each member of the enemy team. After a four-minute clutch, Leona was in a sniper battle with the last member. The guys looks just about ready to burst. Even Clark was feeling the pressure, he moved to stand behind the couch and was so concentrated, he didn't notice his radio going off.

 _Come on Missy, You got this! Make Ralf proud!_

And she did.

There was a _ping._ The enemy sniper caught Leona's bullet in the head and died - a perfect headshot. The victory screen flashed up, and the Sacred Treasures began screaming. Leona dropped the controller and leaned back with a satisfied expression. Kyo got up and ran a full circle around the couch before leaning over the back of the couch to shake her by the shoulder in congratulations. Iori threw his arms around her and planted a kiss on her cheek.

In a cruel twist of fate, the door slammed against the back wall as it was thrown open. The bang got everyone's attention. There, in the doorway, stood the commander. He never looked particularly _happy,_ but he was clearly angrier than usual. Especially since his operations manager - Colonel Clark - was both late to the meeting, and wasn't responding to his radio messages.

"Colone-..."

The room went from _loud as all fuck_ to absolutely silent. Nobody moved. Clark cringed beneath the commander's stern gaze. Leona had gone beet red and avoided eye contact with her father. She sat stiffly upright, and tried to look professional... which was difficult because Iori's lips were still pressed against her face. She felt him mouth the words _"oh fuck"_ against her skin _._ Kyo was sniggering at quietly as he could.

"... _wha-..._ Colonel, why-... " The commander blinked and the befuddlement fled from his expression. He was once again that stony, indecipherable soldier. "Leona, Clark, my office. Now."

"Yes, Sir."

* * *

 _:0_

 _Daddy heidern pls_


	2. Chap 2 - RinoaDestiny - Jenga

_So this is RinoaDestiny (you can call me Rin). =) As Nano said in the chapter earlier, this is a collab piece between the two of us. Our takes on the boys Kyo and Iori are significantly different enough that we thought this would a great and fun idea to try. So we are going to alternate chapters and do different games with each one. Sky's the limit, so that can include video games, board games, or any other type of game that we can think of. Since we cannot double-post, I'll be posting Nano's chapters under my account (we good with that). ^^_

 _So, I'm gonna start my part with everyone's favorite tower of blocks – Jenga. If anyone follows the FGC, there is a gamer from Japan called Tokido who has a constant rivalry (nice one) with American gamer Hungrybox regarding Jenga matches. There is some hilarious commentary from the usual commentators from each year's event. Gonna use that as the basis for this._

 _This was also surprisingly hard to write. Had to murder my darlings the first time, since everything felt off. Still learning to craft my humor, haha._

* * *

It should have been a simple game of blocks, right? Rules weren't complicated, they had a decent place to play – a cozy little game room – and the players, he of the Kusanagi clan and his rival, Iori Yagami were present and currently engaged in remodeling their tower. Having traded barbs beforehand, they were trying to enjoy themselves but there were two things throwing their game off.

One was their ever-circling commentator: Benimaru Nikaido.

Second was…well, okay. Second was also Benimaru Nikaido.

Across from him, Iori swore as the blond rounded too close by the table. The redhead had just withdrawn a block, had it a hairsbreadth away from the tower, and one accidental move, breath, or loud soundwave would upset the entire thing. "Nikaido, you fuck! Get outta here!"

"Is Iori Yagami going to put the block down? Or will the tower fall?"

Speaking of loud soundwaves…

Kyo had no idea who or what put it into Benimaru's head that a game of Jenga (popular in the West, particularly America according to Bogard) needed a commentator. You pushed blocks out, you stacked them up, and you hoped the tower didn't fall. You hoped your opponent made it topple, though. Fairly straightforward. But his friend decided to comment on every single move – Yagami had told him to chirp somewhere else earlier – and it had messed with not only his rival's focus but also his.

"Goddamn fuck." Iori placed his block on top next to where Kyo had laid his earlier and sat back. A scowl twisted his face, showing stress lines. "Kusanagi, tell your friend to get lost."

"Aw, does Yagami not like me?"

"Your insults are stupid, your hair sucks, and that's the worst shirt."

Kyo stifled his laughter as Benimaru took offense to all three. Yagami, sitting there glaring at the blond model, actually had the advantage for once. While Iori could deliver blistering wit and loads of snark, his nicknames for others usually needed work. So far, he'd been slinging a combination of curse words at Benimaru without dropping a single bad nickname. As if he'd been prepared or practicing. As for the hair, well…one had it flaming red in his face and the other was bottle-blond with it sticking straight up. Kinda a tie there. And for the shirt...

Benimaru had on a form-fitting bronze-colored shirt that kept the usual midriff reveal. Yagami, on the other hand, wore a dark red shirt that reminded Kyo of his tournament outfit. However, it was a simple dress shirt without decoration (for once) and Iori looked classy as hell. There wasn't much his friend could attack him with.

Not that he didn't try.

"Oh yeah? You just growl at people or tell them to die. And you call me stupid?"

If only he could tune this out. Kyo moved off his heels, looking for his follow-up move to Yagami's previous success.

"Also, my hair does not suck –"

"It does."

"You probably came from a rooster."

 _Lame, Benimaru. Can't believe I'm saying this, but Yagami – you've got this._

"Yeah, sure. Call me a cock. Not like you have much of one."

"The girls say otherwise!"

 _Beni…that's just…_ He could only ignore the blustering and glaring and fuming and concentrate. There. He tapped out his block. Grabbed it before it hit the table and upset the entire tower. That would be loss by default.

"What girls? Saw you get shot down during the tournies, brush boy. Ain't no girls into you."

"Like they'd be into you?"

Iori smiled. Kyo knew that smile. "Ever see my team?"

"Yeah. What of it? Two women you murdered and are as psycho as you."

"They like me. They stick around. Probably…"

 _Oh. Yagami's actually going there. Benimaru's red as Yagami's shirt._

"They've lasted longer than you, Nikaido. You and your made-up girls." His rival grinned; it was obvious the direct insult had hit home. Kyo saw Benimaru's eyes narrowing. Great. Fire and lightning. Maybe they should call Kula and get all the elementals in here. Forget the Jenga game. "They know a real man. You're just a speck. Kyo, you done yet?"

"Trying but your little catfight with Benimaru's messing with my game."

"Oh, too bad. You got it. Place it. My turn."

"Hey!"

Thankfully, due to Iori's full-on blast against his friend, Benimaru stayed very quiet as they went through several turns. The tower began to thin out – Yagami played risky as hell, yanking out blocks from even the foundation – and every time Kyo tapped the side, the entire structure seemed to tremble. The gleam in Iori's eyes became anticipatory. Kyo hunched over the table, palms flat against the surface, also waiting.

At any time, one of them was going to lose.

It was now Yagami's turn and his hand stretched forward.

Of course, that was the moment Benimaru Nikaido decided to reactivate his stunned brain and yell. Iori jerked back, actually startled; Kyo dropped a string of curses, all of which were lost in the increasingly loud delayed reaction his friend was having. _Son of a bitch!_

 _ **"Who the hell you calling tiny, Yagami?"**_

Oh shit. Someone might get murdered here. He didn't know if he had to interfere to stop Yagami from getting fried or to stop Benimaru from being turned into charcoal. The redhead growled in the back of his throat – not the best of signs – while everything pointed to a light show about to happen. Goddammit.

The tower wobbled dangerously.

"Shut up, Nikaido. You want to fight – we do it later."

"No! We do it now!"

"Goddamn it, Beni!" Kyo hollered, adding his voice into the turbulent cacophony. He glared daggers at his friend and then for extra measure, shot the same look at Yagami as well. "Let us finish the game first. You want to brawl…after."

"That's what I said," Iori spat out, returning his heated stare with equal venom.

"You look ready to murder, Yagami. Stay put."

"Not if he stays there looking ready to shoot volts up my ass."

What a fucking headache. "Beni, do whatever the hell commentary you want. Back off from Yagami. Don't give me that look. _Back off_ , Beni."

The blond man pouted. "Not fair! You're supposed to be on my side, Kyo."

"You started it, so don't give me that."

"Don't you know, Nikaido? Kusanagi here has common sense. Which you lack."

"Yagami, quit it. Your turn. Pick your block."

Smirking, Iori tapped out his block – the tower doing an infinitesimal shiver – and placed it, not looking away until it was confirmed successful. Okay. His turn. Kyo cracked his knuckles, shot another pointed look at his friend, who still lingered too close to the redhead, and returned to the game. The tower shuddered; his block reluctant to come out. Shit.

"And Kyo Kusanagi is stuck, folks. Will inspiration come to him or will victory go to the one who shall not be named?"

Subdued and still carrying an unspoken insult.

He wasn't stuck. He just needed to find the sweet spot. The one that would yield for him.

Across from him, his rival sat, face deadpan. Good. He was ignoring Benimaru.

Finally, after a few minutes of studying the precarious structure, Kyo saw a possibility. It was risky as hell but Yagami had made riskier moves and the tower obeyed him. It was a side piece, leaving only the middle block to stand support for the three rows above. He didn't have any other options. He went for it, decisive and precise.

Saw a rare gleam of respect in Yagami's eyes and a re-surfacing challenge in his gaze.

Endgame time.

The block wiggled out; Kyo caught it in his palm. Placed it. The tower teetered, resisted, and remained standing. Whew.

"So Kyo Kusanagi pulls through, ladies and gentlemen!"

Back to being loud. No mention of Yagami – interesting.

"Fucking goddamn hell," the other man said, staring at the barebones structure. "Like picking meat from a scrawny-ass chicken."

"You'd know something about that," Kyo quipped, enjoying himself.

"Shut up."

"Come on, Yagami. You afraid to make the next move?"

His rival glared at him. Went for his block. At this point, anything was high-risk.

Of course, he should've been paying attention to Benimaru. Should've but he was too focused on Yagami's turn to notice the sudden movement on his left. Several things happened in rapid and disastrous succession: Benimaru's _Raikoken_ lit the room (blinding him), Iori actually yelped (Kyo heard rather than saw his knee bang the table), and the tower collapsed in a tumble of blocks flung haphazardly in all directions.

One block fell right into his lap.

The lightning crackled. Disappeared. Kyo blinked, seeing afterimages.

There was a deadly silence.

Iori snarled. Began to rise. Kyo didn't move. Didn't bother telling him to knock it off or restrain him. What Benimaru hadn't realized – should've by now – was that while he and Yagami fought each other often (not even for the sake of their families' feud), when they were united in something, they fought as one. A game (even a simple game of Jenga) was a mutual agreement. Someone was going to lose and someone was going to win. If anyone was a sore loser, they'd scuffle it out later.

Benimaru had upset that balance. Had unfairly disrupted their game.

There were consequences for that.

Blinking the fading afterimages away, he arose too. Saw Iori snatch several blocks from the table and hurl them wreathed in purple flames straight at the blond's head.

Benimaru ducked, yelping and ran out the game room, yelling the entire time. "Kyo! Tell the crazy to stop!"

 _Nope. Not this time, Benimaru. You shouldn't have done that._

His rival was out the door first, still flinging flaming blocks. Kyo sprinted after him. This, too, was mutual. No words were needed between him and Yagami. Next time, if Benimaru was at a game, Kyo expected him to be well-behaved. Less loud or just conspicuously absent. He wasn't going to do much damage. Just a bit of a lesson.

He just had to keep Yagami from killing him.

He could do that. Easily.

"Hey! Wait for me, Yagami! Don't do… _what the hell_ , Beni?"

It never got boring. Never.

It was impossible with them around.


	3. Chap 3 - Nanomemes - Mario Kart

_Sup dudes. Mario Kart time._

 _Wiki says Yag's good at sports. But said nothing about his vidyagaymes prowess… so ofc i make him suck ass._

 _Luv u bby! *3*_

* * *

 _Fuck fuck fuck fuck fuck…_ "FUCK!"

There was a mario esque _'whoop'_ and Green Mario with his _stupid_ green car crossed the finish line on the right side of the screen. Iori was playing as Fat Yellow Mario, and was increasingly becoming convinced that his character's weight was slowing his car down.

 _What the hell! Where did that Flying blue shell even come from!_

Kyo was grinning ear-to-ear as he dropped the controller to the thick carpet in 'mic-drop' esque fashion. He leaned forward to rest his elbows on his knees and seemed to be chuckling at Iori's expression. _Bastard._ Iori was sitting on the floor with his back against the couch. Kyo poked at him with a slippered foot, Iori had to suppress the urge to bite him in the leg.

"Two losses in a row. You're kinda bad at this man."

"Shut up! Shut the fuck up!"

"You're such a fucking baby, Yagami. I can put a nipple on that shot glass for yo- Oy! OY! Ow, stop that! You idiot!"

It was summer in Portugal, and Team Yagami had just downed their first opponent in the tech-sponsored tournament. Of course Vice and Mature made him do the heavy lifting again, and he had to _non-lethally_ cut down three unfortunates in a new start-up team. Iori perceived that they actually had some talent, and would've proceeded a good ways into the tournament if they didn't suffer the misfortune of facing any Veteran teams early on. Unfortunately their luck was sour and their first match was against _him._ It was over pretty quick.

He always felt pretty confident in the ring, _except_ when he was facing Kyo Kusanagi. Somehow that guy just ran circles around him. It was ridiculous. Instinct didn't even help that much. Usually he could get a few good cuts in before he was downed. From a spectators point of view, the fight appeared to be quite even. However the fact Kyo always seemed to know what he would do next really messed with his head. _It's like he's time travelling or some shit. Nobody else can do that…_

"Urmph! Gerroff! OFF!"

"Are you a dog or something? Thank god we fixed that zombie shit or else I'd throw you out the window for biting me."

He continued yelling into the carpet until Kyo rolled his eyes, crawled off him, and let him out of the chokehold. Kyo was dressed in his pyjamas when he had rudely barged into Iori's hotel room at 11pm. He had _'come bearing gifts! Hey! Wake up!... Oy!'_ and once he had slapped his rival awake, demanded a game of Mario kart.

Of course Iori wanted to murder him. He'd been exhausted. After Team Yagami's entry in the tournament - _really, it should just be 'Yagami', no 'Team'. Vice and Mature were playing phone games on the sidelines the whole time -_ he wanted a nap. But he didn't get one. Instead, Chizuru called him to say she was going to run business negotiations with the Local Russian Mafias, and to look for her there in case she disappeared. Iori wasn't about to allow that, and demanded she let him escort her.

 _Of course she gave me a hard time… all this 'You don't understand, Yagami! Business is built on trust. If you come, they'll think I don't trust them with my safety. Besides, I can teleport!' yeah. Your teleporting takes like ten minutes to prep… you ain't escaping shit._

So after six long hours of snorting himself awake at office meetings, Chizuru dropped him off at his hotel. He fell asleep standing in the elevator and woke to people taking selfies with him. He stumbled away, failed to lock his hotel door, hit the bed fully clothed, and passed out for the sweetest ten minutes of unconsciousness he… uh, _didn't_ experience. _Wait, is it considered an experience? Whatever._

Then Kyo kicked open his door and shook him awake for Mario cars. He had said something about how Leona was… something, and there was a girl who was named Whip… and how he had to play… Mary cars… to … _What?_

"Yagami! Yoo-hoo. Hey! I'm off, alright? Get up, round three! Come on, we gotta finish this bottle."

"Fuuuck you… I'm _tiiredd._ "

Iori flopped over on his back and stared up at the dark ceiling. Kyo reached for the large bottle of whiskey on the coffee table and poured three shots. _He_ was obviously having fun, probably because he got to spend the whole day hanging out and watching the competition instead of following Chizuru around and doing his best to keep his eyes from rolling back into his head. _Fucker…_ Iori glared at him from the floor as the other man offered him a shot.

"You're in second place, so take two... Bottoms up!"

"I fucking hate you."

" _*gulp*..._ love you too, hun. Drink."

Iori gritted his teeth and returned to his seated position on the floor. He glared daggers at the two sparkling shot glasses before downing them in quick succession. This wasn't going to be good. Why did he agree to this? He'd probably die before he got through that bottle… _11 rounds… 33 shots… urgh._

His hands were beginning to feel fumbly and his head was getting lighter and lighter. Round three was starting… and Green Mario was… hang on. He was Yellow Mario, right?

He was pretty sure he was the green one… He'd never choose a character that looked that heavy for a racing game. It was bound to effect the Mary car's weight, and everyone knows that heavy cars are slower. That's why lawnmowers are faster than Porche's… _wait. Hang on._

* * *

 _Heh… he's hardly playing anymore._

By round 8, Kyo had 8 shots of whiskey in him, and his rival had exactly double that. The bottle still had about a third left, but Kyo wasn't going to insist they finish. Iori didn't handle his liquor well. His face was almost as red as his hair, and he was laughing like a maniac. _Shaking like one too…_ The alcohol had gone to his brain, and suddenly he found nearly all the noises the Wii made to be endlessly amusing. He was still driving in circles around the starting line by the time Kyo ran the course in its entirety.

"Hey Yagami, You wanna keep going? You look pretty drunk."

"I… nope, no… I mean yes… hehe…pour! Two shot! Three shots! The Green Mary wins! Give me two! Fucking two!"

He cackled then flopped sideways to lay giggling on the floor. Kyo poked him a few times with his foot, and when he got no reaction, decided he'd better go back to his own hotel room. He had barged in for friendly competition, not to completely wipe the floor. Of course, he _did_ like winning, but at this point Iori was too inebriated to put up any sort of challenge.

Also, alcohol poisoning was a thing. Kyo wasn't about to let Iori drink himself to death.

"I'm serious Yagami. We're done. You're wasted. Go to bed."

"You're dr-... I'm… complete-completely sober… so-ber… Only drunk people can… can't talk…like this... I am not… uh… "

Kyo rolled his eyes, corked the bottle and grabbed Iori by the arm. He dragged his giggling rival across the floor and dumped him into bed, where he started chewing on one of his pillows. Kyo watched in wonder as Iori grabbed the pillow, tore the pillowcase open with his teeth, and began choking on the feathers. Kyo yanked the pillow away, tossed the rest on the floor and slapped his rival on the back until he stopped spitting goose down.

 _Holy shit… what the hell._

Thankfully, Iori seemed to stop moving after that. Kyo briefly checked if he was still breathing, then grabbed the whiskey and turned out the lights.

He closed the door carefully on his way out, and yawned as he made his way down the hallway. It was only a little past midnight, and he had an early fight tomorrow. Yagami's wasn't until the afternoon, so hopefully he'd sleep off whatever sort of awful hangover he was going to experience in the morning. He frowned as he felt his blood heat up, then shrugged, attributed it to the whiskey, and rounded the corner.

He should've turned around to look, because Drunk Iori had woken up and decided he was hungry. He had managed to open his room door, melt the _'DOWN'_ button, and stumble into the elevator. With a *DING*, the elevator closed and descended to the ground floor.

* * *

"Dayyymm, Yo, D. Wha'cha mean you didn't see Brian dancing? Come on man. The white boy did us some Traditional texas squaredance! Whoever said white people can't dance sure as hell didn't see Brian killin' it on that floor!"

Lucky Glauber laughed and elbowed the footballer affectionately before pulling up up on his phone. He handed the video to Heavy D, and both began howling in laughter. Brian rolled his eyes and continued down the sidewalk toward the hotel all the fighters had been booked at. Lucky and D followed behind him.

The three of them had spent several hours in a disco bar, during which time, after _ages_ of Lucky and D begging him to, Brian had decided to try his hand at dancing. Sure, he needed a few drinks to wash away the apprehension, but was quite pleased with himself. He'd grown up in a rather strict household that didn't condone such silly things as _dancing_ , and had to admit it was rather _cool._

Apparently, Lucky and D thought exactly the opposite and had been laughing about it for the past half-hour. Well, Brian wasn't particularly phased. He had enjoyed the experience, and a video of him dancing badly wouldn't really tarnish his image or career in any way. It'd just be a funny thing they'd bring up and laugh about in the future.

They continued down the winding streets by the light of the full moon. There were no city-installed streetlamps. Rather, some buildings bordering the streets had lamps hanging off of them. The road was cobbled and bumpy, and Lisbon's beautiful oceanfront reflected the brilliant lunar light. There was quite enough light to see, and none of the KOF contestants were weak enough to fear getting jumped in the dark. Even the alleyways were illuminated quite we-...

"Ho'l up fams... Is that? That's the Lory guy! Hell's he doin'?"

"Oy Lucky, Brian, that guy's bad news. 'member last year?"

Lucky and Heavy D nodded curtly to each other and began power walking away. It took them a few seconds to realize Brian wasn't following them. Lucky whisper-shouted at him. " _Hey! Hey dancemaster. If you wanna keep your legs we gotta go._ "

"Alright, I'll catch up."

" _What! Hey Brian! Don't be gettin' all good Samaritan on us fam. Not again ok? I- … oh goddammit! I'm coming!"_

"Nah, nah, he's just really drunk. You guys go on ahead."

Lucky seemed to hesitate, but after a moment turned and left. Brian hadn't moved from his spot yet, he simply observed the _obviously inebreiated_ red-haired fighter attempt to crawl up the alleyway's wall. Somehow he was boring holes in the stone with his fingertips, but he was unable to get a foothold to climb the next step. If he wasn't drunk, he would've realized he was searching for a crease on the smooth glass of a window. _He'll probably kick that window in if I don't get him down… Better try and talk to him, or that poor store owner is gonna have to replace that window…_

Iori was about twelve feet up the wall. Brian straightened his bomber jacket and approached until he was standing beneath the climber. Iori didn't notice him. He was focused on something above him.

"Hey there."

Iori murmured to himself, then reached for something. He slumped back down without his foothold and swung dangerously from one hand. He made a frustrated noise.

"Uh, Lory, right? What are you doing?"

Iori froze, then his head swiveled uncannily to stare at the footballer. He was hanging from one arm and Brian could see the torsion in his shoulder. He seemed to consult with himself for a moment before speaking. Brian blinked at the strange accent.

"The… that rock." He pointed at a protruding brick on the cobbled wall. "I'm going to… I will get it. See?"

 _He wants the brick… okay…_

"Hey, Lory what are you going to do with it?"

He looked at Brian with a condescending expression.

"I'm gonna eat it… the fuck else?"

"Oh… right."

Iori observed him for a moment longer then nodded and turned his attention back to the brick wall. Evidently he thought he had explained his actions adequately, and was probably expecting Brian to leave him alone. With a grunt, he lifted his body weight up on one arm and clawed madly for the brick. He couldn't reach, and swung back down. He cried out as the fingers lodged in the stone were twisted. He hung there from one hand, sulking.

"Hey Lory. Are you hungry? You don't have to eat rocks you know."

That startled him. He looked down and glared. Apparently he wasn't happy with the footballer's presence and kicked the glass pane. It rattled dangerously and Brian willed it to hold. Iori's teeth began to chatter through his words.

" _Orange_ … stole the pillow from me. So I'm gonna pay him the fuck back… gonna get the rock and that'll show him!... _(japanese)_ "

 _Good Lord on high…_

"Eating _anything_ is better payback than eating rocks, man. Let's go to an oyster bar instead. The shells look just like rocks, I promise."

Iori just stared at him, shook his head, then made another swing for the _tasty brick_. He missed again - his arms weren't long enough to reach it. But this time when he swung back down, his anchor hand came free with a _*Shink*_ and he tumbled, screeching, off the wall. Brian caught him. Upon impact with Brian's arms, Iori emitted a squeak strangely reminiscent of a dog toy. He flailed briefly in the footballer's grasp before realizing he was no longer falling. Brian leaned back to avoid getting slapped, then put the drunk man down on his feet. He tipped over, and Brian had to hold him upright by the shoulders.

Iori glared up the wall, then turned his scowl at Brian. His long red hair stood out brightly under the moonlight, and was matted with sweat. He looked pretty tired and leaned heavily against the footballer as he mumbled to himself in a different language.

 _I wonder how long he's been at it? At least the windowpane isn't broken… but now what?_

"You. Help me get it."

"Hey, I think-"

Iori threw his arms up in exasperation and attacked the wall again. He scrambled up to his previous position and made another swing for the ' _far too high up_ 'brick. His shoulder wasn't about to put up with any more abuse, and gave out immediately. He fell again. Brian caught him again, and didn't put him down this time for fear he'd jump back up the wall.

Iori crossed his arms over his chest and sulked. He rubbed at his shoulder and glared at the wall as if _it_ was the one that injured him. He seemed to grudgingly admit defeat.

"Hey, Let's go eat oysters. They're like high-quality rocks. I don't want you running around smashing windows. The people of Lisbon don't deserve that, right?"

"What?"

"Oysters."

"... okay."

* * *

 _I hate you… and you… you can die… your hair sucks… fuck you Kusanagi… oh hi Daimon… and fuck you… and you… and you…_

The Tourney organizer this year had decided they were going to make all of today's contestants line up and shake hands. Normally, Iori would be alright with it. All he had to do was stand there and shake hands with a glazed look in his eyes. Nearly all the other KOF Veteran's would be doing the same. Really the event was for the new, rookie teams who were eager to meet KOF's bests fighters. Most of the veteran teams knew each other already.

 _Kill yourself… I hate your headband Shingo… sup fatty… die Justice man… Choi, how the fuck are you shaking anyone's hand…_

Iori gingerly shook Freddy Kreuger's nine-inch-nails, and bemoaned his _awful fucking hangover._ He looked like shit. He felt like shit. He was so tired that Vice and Mature _literally_ dragged him out of bed this morning. Last night he'd been playing some stupid video game with Kusanagi, and they'd-... _he'd_ gotten really drunk. The rest of just a blur, and Iori had no recollection of anything he did that evening.

He liked to think he had just stayed in bed all last night, but the ache in his shoulder, the fishy taste in his mouth, the stomachache, and the fact _he woke up in the Hotel's lobby,_ ruled out that possibility. He had asked Kyo what had happened, but he either didn't know, or wasn't telling.

 _At least I didn't wake up on like, the rooftop of some building again… Last time it was the Eiffel fucking tower… and it was windy as fuck that morning too! I almost pissed myself I was so scared… huh?_

He had just finished greeting these two black american guys, and froze while gripping the third team member's hand. Something seemed familiar about this guy, but Iori couldn't put his finger on it. Weird… _Riot, do you know him?_ Something about him just seemed friendly and comforting… strange for him to be thinking these things. He peered at the tall American man and held on to him for a good few seconds before the line started to get impatient and he let go. He pondered to himself as he extended his greeting to the next person in line.

 _Hey Riot, who is that?_

 _FOOTBALL_

 _What?_

* * *

* you can get in stomach trouble if you eat too many raw oysters. :0.

* Yag got treated to dinner date. Brian just wanted to do the city of lisbon a service and stop Yag from crawling around like drunk spiderman and kicking windows.

* Brian is one of those texan church kids. Good guy :)

* Wonder who Chiz was meeting with? The European Nests organization died in MM. Wonder if she's also the provider for actual illicit substances lol. Chiz is ultimate pharma-boss. She appreciated Yag coming :)

* The american sports team, butcher's Iori's name as 'Lory'. Someone told them his full name was actually Lorraine, and they never bothered to check.

 _That's all folks_


	4. Chap 4 - RinoaDestiny - Silent Hill 1

_Rin here. So for this one, I've always wondered what a game of Silent Hill 1 would be like for the boys. We have Akira Yamaoka's dissonant industrial music, the absolute mindfuck that is Silent Hill, and the general creepiness of the setting along with clunky controls. As psychological horror, this should be one hell of a trip for them._

 _Also am considering Silent Hill 2 for later, as that plot and its symbolism can really get the boys talking._

 _As a side note, seems like this chapter decided it needed to run long for full effect, so it's a bit of a slow burn. Hope it works. =)_

* * *

"This…this was a bad idea."

"No shit. You just thought that?"

"It was kinda funny at first. The controls and all…"

"I swear, Kyo. Next time one of your friends hand you a game, refuse."

"But it didn't look that –"

"You're hiding next to the couch, Kyo."

"You have your face behind the cushion, Yagami."

Iori didn't have a retort to that, because it was true. He did have his face behind the cushion like some little kid watching a horror movie. That was what this game was – an interactive horror movie. Except it was worse. Much worse. He could deal with gore and jump scares – those got boring after a while. But _this_? This game was pure unadulterated deep-in-your-bones terror, with darkness, blood, and rust hiding the unknown (that creeped him out the most) and the music wasn't helping.

"What the fuck is that sound? Is that even music?"

"It's something," he said, unsure what to even call it. "Think it's closer to your genre, Kyo."

"Rock doesn't have that…ugh. It sounds…"

"Yeah." He left it at that. While the controls were initially funny – Harry Mason moved like a tank (not that any of them knew anything about tanks – that was Ikari team) – it became less funny once they entered combat. Iori, who was neck deep into trying to stay alive, hated the fact that he couldn't simply plow through the myriad of enemies the game threw at him.

He also really, really hated the radio.

When Kyo had mentioned Silent Hill, some sixth sense in Iori told him that the name boded ill. It just didn't sound right. There was an inherent creepiness to it. Reading the summary on the box only confirmed this. He'd asked his rival – sometimes gaming partner (it was weird) – if he'd tried playing it first. The brunet shook his head, said something about getting through it together, and then started up the game. Iori let him have the controller, alarm bells going off in his head.

While the intro cutscene started off tame enough – Iori still didn't like the fact that Mason got into a car accident in Silent Hill in the first place – it became obvious that the town was fucking _off_. Mason's daughter, Cheryl, was no longer with him and the place was foggy (was that snow?). Kyo had said, "Let's just find her." If it was that easy, there'd be no game. As Mason ran down the empty streets, the sky (no, the area) around them began to darken.

Iori kept his eyes fixed on the television screen, foreboding twisting deep in his gut.

Then, the fucking air siren went off in the background.

"Is that…" His rival stood for a moment and went towards the surround sound speakers. Listened closely. "That's an air siren, Yagami."

"No shit."

"It's…it's slightly different. Kinda creepy."

"I think that's the point."

Kyo had returned, sitting back onto his cushion and looking a bit uneasy. "Uh…what's it for?"

"Continue and we'll find out."

So they did. They found out. Kyo had let out a startled "Sonovabitch!" and Iori went wide-eyed, unable to keep the words "Goddamn" locked behind his teeth. As the siren went on, Silent Hill got darker and darker and things happened that didn't make any logical sense. Rusted (or was that blood?) wire fencing, mangled corpses in gurneys, a bloody body on the wire fence, and then out of the fucking goddamn blue, children with knives going straight for Mason.

Kyo freaked. Iori couldn't even make fun of him for that.

Mason had no weapons.

The children got Mason. They watched him crumple to the pavement.

He'd expected an instant "Game Over".

However, that was only the beginning. Mason wasn't dead, there were other people in Silent Hill (a cop named Cybil), and then the game began in earnest in an abandoned café. Iori held out his hand for the controller, seeing his long-time rival actually on edge. Kyo Kusanagi had faced down Orochi, NESTS, and Ash Crimson with much arrogance, anger, and bravado; yet, this game was already doing a number on him.

Iori felt that it was going to do the same to him.

"Give it to me. Take a break."

He ended up regretting those words not long after.

He found the goddamn fucking radio in the café when he tried to leave. That led to enemy encounter number two, of which he couldn't escape from. The radio emitted static – static! – as the swooping bird-like demon (whatever the hell it was) made it its goal to kill Mason. Not only was it trying to kill Mason but it had made its grand entrance by smashing through the goddamn window just as Iori was investigating the radio's jittery sound.

Kyo went "Oh shit!" next to him.

Iori went through his preliminary weapons, a knife and a gun (one found in the café; the other given by the cop) and went for the pistol. The goddamn bird-thing wouldn't stop flying around, taking potshots at him. Mason really wasn't a fighter, which made Iori (who was) quite frustrated. The clunky controls also hampered him and this was only the beginning of the game! Was he going to die right here?

Kyo was silent.

That wasn't good.

Usually, they'd be jibing at each other, making fun of each other's shortcomings but the other man was quiet as the grave. Iori fired off a shot, finally hit the goddamn thing. That was a bad choice of words. Somehow, the game was getting under his skin, too.

After a few more well-placed shots, the creepy and annoyingly lethal thing was dead. He didn't leave the café, yet. Went rummaging around to see if he could find more stuff and he did. A flashlight – why didn't that make him feel better? – a map (there was a fucking map of this cursed town) and some health items. He used one right away. After making sure the café had been picked clean, he went for the doors.

Silent Hill loomed before and around him: darkness, fog, and snow.

He actually shivered.

Began running through the eerie empty streets, the flashlight's beam barely cutting through the fog. The darkness wasn't natural. It just seemed to get darker. Iori pressed his back harder against the couch. Fuck, this was creepy.

Then the radio went off, static the only sound in the silence.

"Fuuuck," he said.

Something went after him in the dark, just beyond the range of his flashlight.

Kyo yelped.

Mason stumbled backward, knocked off balance by whatever the hell that thing was now within the beam of his light.

Iori mashed the controller hard, bringing up his weapons without thinking. His heart pounded. This was a game! He wasn't really in danger!

It didn't matter. He was being attacked by something he didn't know, it was freaking him out – Kyo still fixated on the screen, horrified – he was probably gonna die sooner or later, and this entire town made his skin crawl.

"Yagami – go for the knife!"

The sudden exclamation from Kyo made him jump. Was he going to have a heart attack playing this game? Did he look like Kyo from just a few minutes before?

Knife, knife…right. Right there.

He chose it and Mason had it in his hand. Now if the guy could only use it correctly, instead of moving stiffly. His life depended on it. Iori went in, attempting to stab and slash the freakish monster within his range. The static continued, unceasing. It was driving him mad.

The goddamn radio.

"Yagami! Behind you!"

Son-of-a-fuckin'-bitch what? He whirled – Mason nowhere nearly as fast as he'd like – and heard the demonic sounds first before he saw them. Static – during the second enemy encounter, during this fight, and it dawned on him (he shivered again) what the radio was for. He needed the radio – the game mandated it – because without it, he'd have no warning. He'd be dead several times over. But that meant listening for the static, being apprehensive about hearing the static.

The hell was it with this game?

Unable to fight off so many, Iori did the only thing possible to keep Mason alive.

He found an opening and booked it.

Next to him, Kyo acted like his guidebook. "Yagami, the map. Where are we supposed to go?"

"Fuck if I know!"

"Pull up the map, Yagami."

Iori did the next best thing. He paused the game. Put the controller down.

"What the fuck…who…"

"Team Silent at Konami."

"Which fuckwit genius there thought this was…?"

Kyo shifted. Iori seriously hoped he wasn't leaving him by himself in this dark room with its surround sound, the disturbing and oppressive atmosphere, and the hundred million moments of panic and "What the hell is going on?" still running through his brain. If Kyo had faced down Orochi, so had he – foes that were real, that really did threaten – yet, here he was: experiencing genuine fear because _this_ game unleashed something primal.

He didn't like it.

It meant the team behind the game were fucking geniuses and had to be insane. It was the only logical explanation for something so illogical.

He wanted to pass the controller back to Kyo.

His rival, in the moment it took for him to evaluate these thoughts, had shifted to the side of the couch. It reminded Iori of kids watching scary movies, either hiding behind their hands or putting something more solid in between them and the television. Kyo was doing exactly that right now; Iori grabbed the cushion he'd left behind and did the same, shielding part of his sight from the television screen. Not that it helped much.

The dread still curled tight and cold in his gut.

He continued the game, ran down the streets, found a note scrawled in a childish hand to go to the school. Midwich Elementary School was circled on the map for him. Midwich. That…that didn't sound pleasant. Why were all the names giving him goosebumps?

There was a hospital, too.

Fuck. Hospitals in horror movies never boded well. Did he have to go there later?

"Kyo…hospital's yours."

"Eh…can I pass, Yagami?"

"I'm doing the school. You do the hospital."

The expression on Kyo's face would've been funny any other time, if not for the fact that Iori knew he had the same look. Turning back to the screen, keeping that bone-deep terror as far back in the recesses of his mind as he could, he continued playing. He found a steel pipe (another weapon, which was good) and then found himself going through a puzzle involving keys because Midwich Elementary School wasn't directly accessible.

He hoped this wasn't going to become a pattern.

Once he finished the puzzle and went outside again, the area around him immediately darkened. Tension filled him; he really didn't like this. Pulling up the map, he saw where he was and where the school was located and went running hell-for-leather through the street. His radio crackled – _motherfuck!_ – even as he bolted in the dark while things snarled and swooped in the background. Like hell he was fighting those…things.

Where was the goddamn school?

One more look at the map and he tore through Silent Hill like a man possessed. Was that what this game did to you? He already had Orochi to contend with. He didn't need a fictional town in a video game warping his mind any further. Somewhere in the distance, he thought he heard the siren blaring. Can't be. He must be hearing things.

Oh, that was great. Now he was hearing stuff. He _was_ going mad.

Luckily, he found a save point outside the school. Went for it in a heartbeat.

Then, he entered the school.

As he began exploring Midwich Elementary School (discovered a school map, blood-scrawled papers with cryptic and creepy sayings, eerie paintings, and music that sounded like uncorked insanity), his sense of unease grew and grew. Kyo then said this whole thing was a bad idea, which led to their brief moment of levity (each one of them was hiding) but that moment fled with the onset of the seriously chilling music as he entered the courtyard.

There were enemies there.

Iori really, really, really hated that fucking radio.

"It's those kids again." Kyo sounded terrified. It was a good thing it was just them. This could've been embarrassing – two grown-ass men scared half to death playing a horror game in a dark room with full surround sound on. At night. Because Kyo hadn't done his research and decided they could just get through the game together. Iori didn't think they were even half done. Those were demon children coming straight for him.

To hell with it.

He busted out the steel pipe and beat the bloody life out of them.

He hated the music, the radio (would it just shut the fuck up?), and the fact that killing the demon spawn didn't stop the game from continuing. The school was dark, the hallways were empty, the school bell kept going off (would _that_ stop?), there were more creepy-ass paintings (the hell was wrong with these kids?), and he had another puzzle to solve. Which involved collecting medallions.

Oh good. That sounded fun.

Even getting the medallions was a mindfuck. Somehow, acid was involved for the first one and on the way to getting the second, the game decided that Iori Yagami almost dropping dead from a heart attack was a guaranteed way to keep him playing.

Iori liked cats. Loved them, in fact.

Silent Hill was evil. The first real jump scare that worked on him involved a cat. In a locker. He was wound up so tight that when it happened, he almost threw the controller away from him. He heard Kyo breathing but the other man said nothing. Out of a sheer need to confirm he wasn't alone, he turned around to see his rival by the dim light of the television. Kyo's eyes were the only points of light in the obscuring shadow of his face.

It gave off a distinct eerie effect.

Iori shivered for what was probably the fifth or sixth time tonight.

This game was screwing with his head, making him go mental.

"Did the cat just get eaten?"

Silent Hill _was_ evil. Not only did it scare him with a cat – a cat! – but then his favorite furry feline became a snack for the resident demon children. Kyo hadn't misheard that; Iori heard the cat become chow for some creature beyond the room. Which did nothing to settle the discomfort that was steadily increasing as he continued playing. It was reaching fever pitch and he just wanted to scream.

"Hey, Yagami…you need a break?"

He just wanted to throw the controller. But it felt like the game had taken hold of him; he kept playing, realizing how grim he looked.

His objective was the clock tower. He placed the first medallion, screwed up his courage – that sounded pathetic – went back to the one room with the bloody messages and booked it for the music room. Why was this game so intent on messing with his favorite things? When he got there to solve yet another puzzle involving music notes and a piano to get the second medallion, the piano keys were blood-smeared. He was hitting his tipping point.

"Yagami, take a break. I'll get some beer."

Beer. Lights on. Outside. Away from this fucking room with this fucking game.

That was what he wanted.

"Let me get into the clock tower."

Complete that objective at least. Maybe that'll finish the school? Then Kyo could take over while he took a smoke break. Kyo could get started on the next destination. If it was the hospital, so much the better. Iori would just watch.

There was a cryptic poem in the music room to solve the puzzle. Once Iori figured it out, the medallion was his and he ran through Midwich Elementary School to reach the clock tower. But even placing the second medallion wasn't enough. He wasn't done yet.

What had he missed?

"Uh, Yagami. Wasn't there a third note in that room?"

"There was?"

"Yeah. Something about heat and a hungry beast."

Right. There was a third note. He'd completely forgotten about it in his desperate attempt to finish this goddamn place. So back he went and it still left him confused. He'd been running through the school like a madman. Where else hadn't he gone?

He voiced this concern to Kyo. His rival thought for a minute, asked him to pull up the school map again, and then studied the rooms. The brunet wrinkled his brow, marked off where he'd been on his fingers and then stopped.

"Two places, Yagami. The roof and the basement."

Motherfucking…there was a basement? Iori really wanted to stop. Now. Of course there was a basement. It was a horror game. They all had basements. Or attics. Or creepy-ass places where sane people didn't wander alone.

"Son-of-a…"

"Yeah."

"I'm getting a beer after I'm done with this fucking place."

"So, you're going –"

"To the basement."

If it was him, he'd be flying down and out of the basement as if pursued by a hoard of demons – Silent Hill, though, was demonic in of itself – but Mason didn't run fast enough and it drove Iori nearly insane just getting there. The basement growled (wait, what the hell?) when he activated the machine down there and then he _was_ out of there, hoping that that was it.

He made it to the clock tower in record time, not that anyone was keeping count.

The music was discordant, loud, unsettling.

Not good.

He was finally able to enter the clock tower. Saw a ladder going down. _What?_ He thought the clock tower went up. Why was it going in reverse?

His stomach flipped. He felt it sink, as if weighted with stones.

Shit. This wasn't over, was it?

"Why…?"

So it wasn't just him. Kyo had noticed it, too.

There was only one action and one direction left for him to take. He went down the ladder. Saw himself descend and hit bottom.

He heard the siren.

"Oh motherfucking…"

"Uh, Yagami…last time we heard the siren..."

"I know," he said, suddenly dreading the next part. "The place changed, didn't it?"

That was in the beginning. That had freaked Kyo out. It was why Iori had volunteered to take his place, not liking the expression on the other fighter's face. He wondered what he looked like now. Probably the same.

One more ladder. This one went up. At least that made sense.

But what came after didn't and Mason said as much, realizing he was in a different dimension. It looked like the school's courtyard but the courtyard didn't have a huge fucking occult symbol right in the goddamn center. Iori felt the hairs rise on the nape of his neck. Oh shit…this was so much worse than what Kyo experienced in the first few minutes of the game. Was he able to go on?

His mind was made up for him the moment the music started.

Sharp, dissonant, screams of some demonic beast interspersed between the mangled chords of a piano or harpsichord. It drove hellish musical shards into his ears, wrecked the innermost parts of his soul that howled against it.

No. Fuck no. He was done.

He shoved the controller into Kyo's hands. Saw Kyo drop it and bolt for the light switch.

The lights went on. The music kept playing.

Iori paused the game. Shuddered. Motherfucking goddamn hell.

"Beer. Now. No, goddammit – wait for me!"

He was not going to be left in this room alone. Not with this game. Not with the absolute sensation of everything going _wrong_. Midwich Elementary School could go fuck itself, because Iori was done. If Kyo wanted to play, his rival was free to do so.

He followed Kyo out, not even bothering to close the door. He didn't want to get left behind.

He'd never been so creeped out in his life. He shuddered again.

Motherfucking hell.

* * *

"So which friend of yours told you this was a great game?"

His rival gulped down his beer, looking as spooked as he felt. "Not someone you know. A family friend. Loves his video games."

"Lemme guess…he's into horror?"

"He just told me it's a great game. That's all I knew, Yagami."

"You didn't even bother to check."

"He's my friend! Why would I…you know what? Nevermind."

Iori drank his beer, also not bothering with holding back. After that under-the-skin crawling sensation, getting a bit drunk would help. He'd need a few more cans to do it, but he had all night. The school _had_ changed and he wasn't ready to go back in there and see what happened to the surroundings. He was going to have nightmares tonight; if Orochi wanted to join, he'd gladly tell the god to fuck off and leave him alone.

"Are you going back in there?"

Kyo looked at him and hesitated. Took another drink of his beer.

That determined it, didn't it?

"Only if you come back with me."

"I'm not playing. I'm done."

"I know. Saw your face in there. Didn't know you got frightened that badly, Yagami."

"It's not…" He gestured in frustration, unable to phrase exactly what unnerved him about the game as a whole. "I can face up to gods, to megalomaniacs. To assholes bigger than myself. But _that_? That thing…that town…it's screwing with me, Kyo. Things don't make sense."

"Like the ladder going down instead of up."

"Or the siren."

Across from him, Kyo shuddered. "You left me in a bad spot."

"Can't take it anymore."

"We're not getting to the hospital, are we?"

"See if you can finish the school." He finished his beer and ditched the can in the wastebasket. Reached for another can to take back with him to the room. He needed some liquid courage tonight. "I'll be taking a few of these. You mind?"

"Take the whole goddamn bunch if you need to, Yagami. Save some for me as well."

Iori took a few more. Marked out three for Kyo.

Perhaps playing drunk was the only way to make it through Midwich Elementary School.

* * *

He got a bit buzzed but that didn't make things better. Kyo was still hiding against the side of the couch and Iori had repositioned himself. He was now behind the couch, half his head out to see the screen with its nightmare school. The farther he got from the television, the safer he felt. Of course, with the surround sound, he couldn't escape it entirely. The sounds, the music – the goddamn notes of insanity – played around him. The radio emitted static.

Kyo cursed. Loudly.

"The gun, Kyo! Use the gun!"

There were still demon children around. The floors and walls were steel grates, rusted and bloody wire, misshapen and stained wood and it was so very dark. Mason's flashlight only illuminated within a certain distance and even watching, Iori tensed. Kyo switched to the gun and began firing wildly, having not played since the beginning.

Iori knew that fear. Did he know it.

"Aim at them. Aim…there. Do it again."

Kyo did. Swore under his breath.

"Watch your ammo. We're limited."

"How'd you play for so long?"

"Dunno." It was the truth. "Felt like I couldn't stop."

"Until you did." The last demon child in the hallway fell in a pool of blood. For extra measure, Mason kicked them in the head. Kyo had been observing him earlier. "Until you did, Yagami. It feel like this?"

"Close enough."

Midwich Elementary School was like some extreme torture chamber. Everywhere was barbed wire and blood. Everything was decayed or mutilated. There were bodies hanging from the walls. The girls and boys bathrooms teleported Kyo around, as if things weren't creepy enough. Iori dug furrows into the floor with his nails. Why was this place so fucked up? Why did the siren have to go off when he was in the school?

Kyo was right. He'd left him in the worst place possible.

This was the hellish take on the school. Could they be done with it already?

"Fucking hate this," his rival said, voice taut. "You doing okay over there, Yagami?"

"Haven't left yet, have I?"

"Not a word of this to anyone."

"Don't need to tell me twice. It's embarrassing." Hell, if any of their acquaintances or friends (in Kyo's case) saw them like this, they'd never hear the end of it. Iori Yagami and Kyo Kusanagi, the two biggest badasses in the fighting circuit, cowering like children in the dark. "Your friend Nikaido will never shut up."

"He's not speaking to me after that Jenga incident."

"That was his fault."

"You nearly set his hair on fire."

"He almost fried my balls. Guess which one I consider the bigger loss?"

"Heh." It was the only time Kyo smirked during this entire night but as Iori watched, that slipped and was replaced by immediate horror. "Yagami, you hear that?"

"Yes." Why did the game have to go out of its way to include a voice clip of the little girl – Cheryl, wasn't it? – begging her father for help? In the abandoned nightmare dimension school, that was the worst place for it with the utter isolation; Iori felt goosebumps ripple throughout his entire body. This Team Silent had done their work too well.

Next to him, Kyo played with a look in his eyes Iori was familiar with.

He pushed another can of beer towards Kyo.

The brunet reached for it, opened it, and downed a few swallows. Iori didn't know Kyo's alcohol tolerance but he hoped it fuzzed out the sharp edges of horror for him. He went for his fourth can and finished half of it in one go.

Best thing would be for him to pass out entirely. But that would leave him in the room alone if Kyo didn't notice or got drunk off his ass and left. With the music playing. Leaving him with his nightmares in Silent fucking goddamn Hill.

"Ugh. A puzzle."

"Yeah." That fourth can hit him right where he needed it. Okay. He could do this. "Game fucking loves those. Have fun running around."

"Hate these walls. It…ugh."

"Take another drink, Kyo. Sounds like you need it."

"We'll both be drunk after this."

"I'm okay with that." Iori peered over the couch as his rival tapped buttons, guiding Mason around the decrepit school. Even the outdoors in this place was scary. Was that bench smeared with blood? Iori knew there was no way in hell he was walking home tonight. He was going to sleep here, if there was a place safe for the last heir of the Yagami clan in the Kusanagi home. Definitely not in this room. Maybe there was a living room?

"Hey, this seems familiar. Didn't you do keys last time?"

"Yeah, I did."

"Huh."

Iori finished his fourth can. Planted his face against the back of the couch. "Lemme know when you're done with the puzzle."

"You're mumbling, Yagami. Can't hear you."

He did a one-finger salute but knew Kyo wouldn't see it. At least it made him feel better.

The speakers in the room continued their assault on his ears. Hellish music to suit a hellish environment. Somewhere to his left, he heard the other fighter shout even as the chaotic audio darkened. Iori guessed demon children. He wasn't looking until Kyo told him the puzzle was done. The less creepy images seared into his mind, the better.

He kept hearing gunshots. Kyo needed to get more ammo at the rate he was using them.

After some time – some clinking and clanking (was that also running water?) – his rival tapped him on the shoulder. Even with all the alcohol in him, Iori still leapt half out of his skin at the mere touch; he swore the sudden scream came from him. Kyo had pushed himself backward, hands up in the air with the controller still gripped in his left.

"Whoa! Chill there, Yagami. Just wanted to let you know puzzle's done."

"Should've just told me." At this rate, he was going to have a heart attack.

"You had your face buried in the couch. You still awake there?"

"If I wasn't, you just scared me awake." Iori told himself to calm down, to settle the jangled nerves even the beer wasn't able to smooth away. It was the audio. He knew it was. He must've looked wild-eyed because Kyo was still in that placating mode, unsure of whether to continue. It wasn't like he was going to Riot or anything; Orochi was quiet. Silent Hill was doing a good job taking over, driving him nuts in the process.

"There's some stuff to read. Maybe you can help me figure them out?"

"Another puzzle?"

"I don't think so." His rival dropped his hands and tilted his head towards the television. "Mind helping me out?"

Now that he'd nearly had his ghost driven out of him, Iori peeked over the top of the couch at the excerpt on the screen. Speaking of ghosts… "Poltergeists…fear…nightmares. Ha." He was still able to read the text and put the pieces together. He wasn't drunk enough. "Energy with physical effects. Girls. Well fuck."

"You think…?"

"That little girl's bad news."

"Pass me another beer, Yagami."

"Your last one, Kyo. This one's mine." That was his last can as well. Number five? To hell with it. He opened it and chugged it. Tossed the can aside – maybe they'd pick it up later. "So we're getting some background, huh?"

"Looks like that's not the only bit of reading we have."

"Huh?"

"Look." His rival took a gulp of beer, wiped his mouth with the back of his hand, and tapped at one of the buttons on the controller. "I'm in another part of the library. There's a story in this book."

Perhaps the fifth can did the trick. His mind was a bit fuzzy. "Hunter and lizard?"

Kyo read the excerpt out loud to him. Something about a hunter, a giant lizard (not Godzilla, wherever that thought came from), and shooting the creature point-blank in the mouth with an arrow. The part of Iori's brain that was still functional spun that story around until it clicked. This wasn't just a random part of a book in the library. This was...

"Huh…when did you last save?"

"Just a few minutes ago. Why?"

"That…" His mind was getting scrambled. "That sounds like advice, Kyo. You may…you may need to use it."

"You mean –"

"A giant lizard. Get ready. I think…boss fight."

"Yagami, you drunk already?"

"'Bout time." It only took five cans. "You got anything…bow…arrow?"

The weapons and items menu pulled up with Kyo cycling through all the weapons. The knife, the gun, the steel pipe, a shotgun…no bow or arrow, but… "Nothing like that, Yagami. You see anything?"

"If a giant motherfucking lizard…what…"

"I see you have no problem swearing while drunk."

"Oh haha. Fuck off. Kyo, you have a shotgun."

"It's not a bow or arrow –"

"Doesn't need to be." The top of the couch was nice and soft. Iori rested the edge of his cheek against it, still keeping the screen within line of sight. "Most powerful weapon. Use it."

"If you say so."

"I…I know so. Go find the boss."

That was easier said than done. Kyo paused the game a few times, finished his last can of beer, and continued wrecking the shit out of demon children. Iori watched, the alcohol finally taking effect on him, so he observed Kyo's progress through half-lidded eyes, tuning out the background audio. Maybe he could do this; it all depended on Kyo, who was swearing furiously under his breath. Silent Hill had a different effect on the Kusanagi heir.

Kyo was afraid but he was pissed.

"Save, Kyo. Get more ammo."

Both of which happened shortly after. His rival was retreading his steps in this inverse nightmare world, and Iori knew where he had to head next.

"Basement, Kyo."

"Thought you were drunk."

"Are you?" It'd explain a lot about Kyo's sudden bravado. "You're cocksure."

"You're still hiding behind the couch."

"Yeah," Iori said, words slurring a bit. "You're fucking drunk."

It also explained a lot about what happened next, because Iori sure as hell didn't see that coming. Miracle of miracles – fucking lot in this place – Kyo actually found the basement and the boss, which was some monstrous lizard. Of course he forgot to equip the fucking shotgun. Iori actually surfaced above the couch, almost flopping over it in an attempt to get his rival's attention. "Kyo! Kyo!"

"The fuck you doing, Yagami?"

"Shotgun…get the…oh hell…"

Kyo blinked, paused the game, blinked again and then went back into the game.

"You…drunk…menu…shotgun…oh fuck…"

His rival was drunk, had probably forgotten how to…what was it again? Get the shotgun? "Shotgun, Kyo. Give it to the…fucking Godzilla."

 _"What?"_

This was too funny. Iori fell over the couch, laughing.

"Oookkaaay. You okay there, Yagami?"

"Godzilla's gonna eat you!"

"Yagami, what… _fucking shit what_?"

"Hahaha! It ate you!"

The expression on the other fighter's face was too funny for Iori to not bust out laughing again. So when Kyo actually hurled the controller right at the console (rebooting the entire game), it startled Iori for the briefest second before he began howling again. Part of his mind – that smallest sliver that still retained coherent thought – put it together. He pointed at the pissed off brunet, too amused and drunk to care about how upset Kyo was.

"Kyo Kusanagi just ragequit!"

"You sound like a goddamn baby, Yagami."

"Ragequit!"

"Oh for fucking…Yagami, you need to go to sleep. You're drunk."

"So are you!"

A heavy sigh from above. "Not one word, Yagami."

Iori yelped as Kyo hauled him off the couch, pushing him towards the entrance. "I'll put you in the guest room. If you wake anyone up, it'll be me."

"Sleep?"

Another sigh from behind him. "This was a really bad idea."

* * *

Iori didn't remember much from last night after a certain point besides Silent Hill, library, and something about a fucking shotgun. It also didn't help that he had a hangover – those were rare – which pounded behind his eyes and felt as if he had barbed wire through his brain. Kyo looked better than him but mentioned that he was drunk off his ass last night and had woken him up after screaming about Silent Hill and the goddamn demon children in his sleep.

That reminded Iori about why he avoided drinking until drunk.

He blamed it all on the game. That wasn't a game. That was some demonic entity.

Kyo mentioned again that not a word of this was to go out.

Iori was quick to agree.

And if Kyo decided he wanted to play another horror game like this, he was on his own. Iori didn't do good with horror. He'd served his time on this one. If Kyo even so much as suggested another game (apparently Silent Hill was a series), Iori was going to toast the console, the game, the game box, or just get drunk again.

Hell, maybe he'd set Kyo on fire.

That would be more fun.


	5. Chap 5 - Nanomemes - Monopoly

_So…anyone up for a game with iconic play pieces, get-out-of-jail free cards, and that is bound to ruin someone financially? Cue Nano's Team Murder and Monopoly, that oldest of board games that will make you want to strangle someone by midway through._

* * *

The four of them were sitting around a table in the hotel's main restaurant. It was a beautifully decorated place with a warm mid-century theme, closely reminiscent of Frank Lloyd Wright's architecture. Warm sunlight filtered through the paneled wooden blinds and birds chirped from their perches in the climbing vines. Outside was a fragrant smelling herb garden. A modernist concrete fountain sat amidst the rosemary hedges and poured a bubbling stream into a lily pond.

It was beautiful and peaceful, and Rock Howard was doing his best to enjoy it. So far, his first musical tour with Iori's band had been nothing short of warfare-level chaos. He never knew what was going to happen within the next three hours. They might be running around the city - they might be rehearsing - they might be meeting fans - they might be fighting gangsters…

Well, he didn't have a hand in the planning. He wasn't given that option. His job was to follow Iori around, not lose his phone, and _'stop smoking Yashiro's weed for god's sake, Howard! Your dad is gonna eat me alive!'_

He'd never smoked weed, but had stopped trying to defend himself against the accusation. Iori wasn't one to be persuaded about anything. Rock looked to the smirking red-haired man rattling the dice to his left and tapped the table insistently, indicating for him to hurry up.

He got an eye roll and his toes stepped on for that. _What a baby._ Kyo Kusanagi - who sat directly across from Rock, chuckled and said something offensive in Japanese. Kusanagi's girlfriend had taken the last remaining seat and upon hearing whatever Kyo said, frowned and shook her head.

"Miss Yuki, what did he say?"

"... It's best you didn't know Roc-"

"He said he's a fucking poor ass bitch who's gonna lose this game of monopoly."

"... Right. Sure boss."

About three hours ago, upon landing in Japan for the last leg of their tour, Rock Howard had followed his boss off the airplane and onto a taxi which shipped them directly to -what he would later find out - was Kyo Kusanagi's front door. Rock had been pretty tired from the plane trip, and all the complications that dealing with Iori and his group of crazies entailed. He wanted nothing more than a shower and a nap. Iori had other ideas.

Upon their arrival at the traditional Japanese-style gate, he hopped out of the taxi and, without so much as a word, immediately clawed his way up the whitewashed protective wall to disappear into the depths of the property. Rock stood there outside the gate, flabbergasted - but not particularly shocked. He was learning to just roll with these sort of things.

After about twenty minutes of yelling, screaming and laughing from inside the compound, the tall wooden doors creaked open and out came his boss, followed closely by a pretty young lady and Kyo Kusanagi - Rock recognized him immediately. He guessed the girl was either Kyo's sister or girlfriend. All these Asians looked pretty similar anyways. Best not to assume anything...

Rock had no time to even introduce himself, for he was promptly herded back into the taxi and squashed between the window and Iori - who had taken the jump seat. Kyo sat in the front and was directing the taxi driver. The conversation conducted in the car was composed entirely of aggressive Japanese and Rock could understand none of it. It didn't seem like Iori was willing to translate anything for him either. He decided he was going to try his best to sleep... and _not_ drool on his boss this time because otherwise he'd never hear the end of it.

 _Yashiro had a blast… damn, I think he sent that picture to the news too…_

Naturally they arrived just as he was about to doze off. He was shaken awake and followed his party- bleary eyed - through an expensive looking hotel, into an expensive looking restaurant. They were all dressed rather casually, (with the exception of Iori, who had dressed awfully) and stood out like sore thumbs in the restaurant full of tuxedos and evening gowns. Two weeks ago this would have bothered him immensely, but Rock was gradually becoming accustomed to being the center of negative attention.

It didn't seem to bother Kyo Kusanagi either. He seemed perfectly happy to continue his verbal jousting with Iori in full view of the restaurant's other well dressed patrons. His expression was easy and mischievous. Rock didn't think he'd ever seen anyone's eyebrows move that much on someone's face. Iori responded with his typical wild-eyed hissing and spitting and foaming at the mouth.

 _Ugh…_

Kyo's girlfriend - unlike the other two, seemed to have a sense of shame. She cringed in on her chair and looked about sheepishly, doing her best to straighten her T-shirt and tuck it neatly into the skirt. She looked worryingly at the two men snapping at each other and smiled shyly at Rock. He shrugged in return and tried to communicate _"boss is nuts"_ with a brief hand gesture.

"I promise Kyo's not normally like this. They get a little wild together… My name's Yuki by the way. What's yours?"

Rock was startled momentarily. He didn't know she spoke English. Granted, she had no opportunity to speak with him during the car ride, due to the ruckus. Kyo and Iori had actually tried to strangle each other at nearly every stoplight. Upon reflecting, Rock felt bad for the taxi driver.

"Um, hi. I'm Rock… uh Rock Howard. Nice to meet you Yuki. Your English is really good. I didn't expect you anyone to be fluent."

" _fluent_? Oh, thank you. I'm in my third year of college. English is my major. I'm not quite as good as you think I am, so I hope you don't mind if I practice with you."

 _A normal person… thank god._

"Not at all. In fact, I'm… honestly relieved just to have someone to talk to. He-" Rock jabbed a thumb at the man currently on the floor, in a chokehold, "has been talking to himself in Japanese ever since we disembarked… I'm not sure why."

"Ah… well. Maybe he's practicing. He told me once that he hardly speaks his native tongue back in the US… wait, what does disembark mean? I'm not familiar with the term."

"Oh! It mean to get off, like-"

Rock was interrupted with a Bang. All the silverware jumped. Rock flinched and turned to see what sort of nonsense his boss had started this time.

To his surprise, it was Kyo who had slammed a box onto the table. He waggled his mobile eyebrows and said something excitedly in Japanese as he pointed at box's logo.

 _Monopoly?..._

Everything was in Japanese, but Rock immediately recognized it as monopoly. Iori was laying flat on his back on the floor and was eyeing Kyo's leg like he was about to bite into it. After a moment, he decided he wasn't that hungry yet and took his seat beside Rock. He looked a good deal more disheveled then before, but at this point, it didn't really matter. The only thing they could do that would be even more conspicuous was, perhaps, set themselves on fire.

Within a few moments, Kyo had popped open the box, distributed money, and the dice started rolling.

* * *

"heh..."

"... oh dear."

"Fuck."

" _Oh, no… "_

Iori had been losing for a while now and it was pissing him off.

Already, he had to sell two of his railroads, and nobody had landed on the single space he was lucky enough to build a house on. Last turn he had paid his luxury tax _(It was probably Karma, since he spent a large amount of time and energy avoiding taxes in real life),_ so he wascash strapped... and he had just rolled a one.

Which put him squarely on 'Broadway'

Which was owned by Rock Howard.

Who had _just_ built a hotel on the property the previous round.

 _How the Hell am I losing to a kid who can't even read anything on the board…_

"Hey Yagami, you know your kid can't even read Japa-"

"Shut the fuck."

"Hey dude, I'm just saying."

"Shut."

"Hehe."

 _Damn Kusanagi, and his stupid little game… he's not even doing better than I am._

Like Iori, Kyo also had to sell most of his properties to Rock in order to pay for rent. So had Yuki, but she was behaving a lot more graciously about it and actually seemed to be enjoying herself despite the fact she was losing.

Howard, on the other hand, seemed to be enjoying this game the least. Even if he was currently the richest person in the game, he spent most of the time looking uncomfortable. As he obtained more and more properties and slowly drove them toward bankruptcy, his countenance grew more and more terrified.

If he had been even a little bit proud of himself, Iori would have given him a hard time. But the poor kid looked at his boss's current deeds, his pile of fives, and immediately recognized he wouldn't be able to pay the fee to stay on Broadway for this turn.

Rock cast him such a despairing look, he didn't have the heart to rib him.

Iori rolled his eyes and shuffled through his pathetically small stack of monopoly money, hoping to miraculously find a couple hundreds. There were no hundreds. The entirety of his properties could neither be sold nor mortgaged to pay for Howard's rent.

 _Guess the brat takes after his father. Vicious businessmen to the core…_

He switched to English.

" _Can you take US dollars?"_

" _... boss you did that last time. Besides, it's cheating..."_

" _..."_

" _Eug...Fine."_

Kyo's voice grated on Iori ears as he piped up, thrilled with his rival's misfortune.

"Ha! All broke, hm, Gammy? did you try to bribe him with actual money aga-"

"SHUT!"

 _Fhwoosh!_

To punctuate his words, he set Kyo alight. The deep purple flames crackled outwards from about the snarky bastard. Kyo flinched and cast a dirty look at him before Orange flames countered purple ones. The room fell silent, a few ladies in the 'audience' released little shrieks of surprise.

"Dude, you melted my silverware."

Kyo huffed, collected his composure, then smirked and theatretically spread his arms across the mercuric puddle- which used to be his utensils set- as if he were displaying it. Yuki rolled her eyes. She was used to this kind of thing. Rock was trying to get his hair to stay down. The blast of heat and pressure had caused one side of his haircut to stick straight up, and it was currently unworkable. Both Shermie and the hairdresser had complained endlessly about him.

But Iori didn't feel that bad. Rock had bankrupted him after all. He'd deal with his guitarist later. His first priority was to formulate the most unapologetic _'oops'_ known to man.

And, well. He couldn't say he wasn't proud of the results.

* * *

…

 _It was inevitable… but this sucks._

Rock Howard's real estate empire was putting a gradual, but sure, stranglehold on everyone's funds. Iori had already lost and was currently near the front of the restaurant trying to bribe the wait-staff into letting them stay for lunch. Apparently, after throwing around twenty some dollar bills, they relented, but required him to order food right there. He was poring over a menu, most likely choosing rare steaks for everyone again.

But that was inconsequential. Iori was footing the bill, so Kyo was planning on ordering at least three entrees. What was causing him stress was the fact he had landed on Go-to-jail, and didn't have enough funds to bail himself out… He was currently trying to purchase his girlfriend's get-out-of-jail-free card, but she wasn't selling.

"Yuki, come on. Rock sold _his_ to Iori. Help me out here. Or at least give me a loan."

"Haha, sorry Kyo~. You're too poor to lend to. And what if I need my jail free card? You're about to lose anyways. Just roll for doubles."

"Urg… _Yuki, come on._ "

"Be a good sport… and go make sure Yagami doesn't order a stack of prime ribs. I want pasta."

"... fine."

Kyo eyed Rock Howard's pile of money and assets and briefly considered asking _him_ for a cash injection, but tossed the idea. Rock looked pretty scared, and would probably give him whatever he wanted. However if Iori found out, Kyo would never hear the end of it.

 _Ugh. I can hear it in my brain, "You were begging my employee for a loan, Kusanagi? Ha! No dignity. I'd rather roll over and die."_

Welp. If he was playing with anyone other than his Girlfriend, he might have flipped the board. But then she'd never let him hear the end of that.

" _That was so immature Kyo! You always get so competitive when Yagami comes to visit. I don't think it's healthy. One of my good friends is a psychology major and I think you guys should go talk to her. In fact, the profess-... (etc)"._

Not worth it.

Kyo rolled his eyes. Tossed his few remaining dollars back to the bank, and stood from the table. Fine. He'd been defeated, but at least he lasted longer than Yagami. As far as he was concerned, that was all he cared about.

Now, for lunch… he wanted the Chilean sea bass. Three of them.


	6. Chap 6 - RinoaDestiny - Angry Birds

_So this time, it's Angry Birds. Apparently, Japan has its own version with the birds and pigs in traditional Japanese clothing like kimonos, samurai armor, ninja outfits, etc. for a small window of time. That blows my mind. It also makes my understanding of how to approach this chapter quite different, since it affects how my boys perceive the game._

* * *

 _Yahoooeee!_

"The fuck?"

"Oh wow. Didn't expect that."

Iori glared at him even as his tower collapsed, crushing his green pigs beneath the falling beams and blocks. Kyo had meant for the starter bird – the one clad in the samurai armor – to soften the other's defenses. What he hadn't expected was for the yellow featherhead to soar straight through Yagami's walls, smashing the pillars inward and causing everything to tumble, crash, and buck. As he watched his rival's stronghold fall apart, one of the tinier pigs rolled over the cliff. His bird disappeared later in a cartoonish explosion.

Kyo grinned.

Iori stared daggers at him. Turned back to his phone and swiped. "You got lucky."

"You want another round?"

"Yes." The other man tapped on his phone. "My turn next."

"Bring it, Yagami. Give me your best shot."

That just earned him another dirty look. Kyo snorted, ignoring the redhead. He waited for Yagami to issue the challenge. Iori wasn't a sore loser, persay, but he didn't like to lose and after they somehow ended up on the same train going from Esaka Station – Yagami said it was coincidental this time (right) – to Dotonbori, they went from ignoring each other to somehow playing a mobile game together. Yuki had pointed out this cute little game with birds and Kyo had played it just to amuse her. That was before he found out just how fun it was.

Somewhere down the line, after ten minutes elapsed on the train, he got Iori acquainted with Angry Birds and before he knew it, both of them were shooting dive-bombing birds at each other's fortresses. Currently, the score was five to one and Yagami was pissed. The only reason why his rival didn't make a louder fuss was because they were in public. The elderly grannies and grandpas dozed in their seats, other young people were equally engrossed in their phones, and the few salarymen standing around were reading either newspapers or raunchy comics.

 _Ow. That looks painful. Don't know how all that…_ A notification tone sounded from his phone. He looked down. Challenge issued.

He accepted. Game on.

The screen scrolled right, revealing his castle in all its glory. His pigs oinked, with the head pig donning a fancy samurai helmet. His underlings also grunted, wearing the white and blue headbands he often spotted on sushi chefs. There were three levels of fortifications. He spotted the weak point Yagami needed to hit. The strike didn't have to be precise, no, but Yagami needed to get a bird or two within that zone to even start the chain reaction.

Then, the screen scrolled left and he saw the slingshot. No bird there, yet. Yagami was deciding, he guessed, having judged his castle sound. He glanced at the other man standing to his right beside the closed train doors. Iori's focus was on the screen. His finger lingered over his phone, undecided. He looked back down at his phone and noticed the selection. Yagami had three birds to choose from: the red chuckling bastard with the topknot and ninja garb, the tiny blue bird wearing a _taiko_ drummer's clothes, or the same yellow bird that he launched at his rival the round before. He wondered if Yagami would retaliate like with like.

Instead, Yagami surprised him.

The blue bird was in the slingshot. Kyo stole a quick glance at the redhead again.

Strategic.

The slingshot pulled back tight – the sound of it straining emitted from his phone's speakers – and Iori Yagami let the blue bird fly. Kyo watched as the bird separated into three (should've been a ninja trick, like those shadow clones) and collided into his castle. Bird one smashed into the roof, rattling it but otherwise not budging it. Birds two and three, though, became a problem. Bird two crashed near enough to the weak point, setting off a tiny chain reaction that killed one of his four pigs. Bird three shook the foundations. He held his breath.

The foundations settled. Stood solid.

Good.

Yagami bared his teeth at him in a triumphant grin.

It wasn't over, yet, though. His castle was still standing.

"I'm still here, Yagami. You have two more birds left. Don't celebrate yet."

That wiped the smirk off his rival's face. Kyo thought he looked crestfallen. Oh well.

"You're going down, Kyo."

"Then do it."

The other man growled. Threw the fat red bastard into the slingshot. Even with the background noise of the train's almost silent movement and the occasional cough from the other passengers, he heard Iori muttering under his breath. Thought he heard "die" and "son-of-a-bitch", which got a good chuckle from him. After hearing "die" from Yagami for so long, he took it as a joke now. That, or Yagami's go-to line whenever he met him. It wasn't as if Iori wanted him dead – well, he probably came close after Silent Hill, but they weren't going to mention that.

Benimaru still wasn't talking to him.

Kyo did a mental shrug. Wasn't his fault the Jenga game went that way.

A cackle from his phone. Incoming and red pinfeathers went flying this way and that as his fortifications took a direct hit, upending the entire upper levels of his castle. He shot a look at Yagami, whose eyes never left his screen. Kusanagi fort number four swayed back and forth, tumbled, and ripped apart, resulting in the deaths of samurai pig number one and unfortunate sushi chef pig number two. That left just one pig.

"Haha! Gotcha!"

"Dammit!" he swore. "Beating your ass on the next round, Yagami."

The light shifted, throwing a shadow on his rival's gleeful face. "Heh. Do your best, Kyo."

"Hey! It's five to one, remember?"

"Five to two soon. Eat that!"

His last pig, stalwart though he may be, met Iori's yellow kamikaze and died in an explosion of feathers and smoke. Point to Yagami. He was still winning but if Yagami kept this up, the tables were going to turn soon. He could easily see Yagami getting the best of him if he didn't step up his game.

He sent Yagami the challenge immediately. Iori accepted within the second.

Round eight rolled into place and his assault on Yagami's castle took on an edge of utter destruction. Iori scowled loud enough to wake the elderly man next to him – Kyo heard him and smirked – which only aggravated the other fighter, who stabbed at his phone. "Again!"

"You're a glutton for punishment, you know that, Yagami?"

"Shut up!"

He stopped laughing when Iori's renewed assault took his next castle by storm. With one blow – not accidental, not even a fluke – Iori took the round and bumped the score from six to two to six to three. Kyo stared at him, wondering how he got the hang of it so fast.

"Your turn, Kusanagi."

"Goddammit! Fine!"

Back and forth they went, rounds ten, eleven, and twelve going into full swing. He shot wide on round ten, barely disturbed Iori's defense, and lost the red bird in the ravine. He wasn't even sure how he did that. Round eleven was Yagami's, dominating in every which way. Six to four. Kyo entered round twelve with trepidation, the count rattling inside his brain.

Focus. He could do this.

His yellow squawker hit Iori's base, throwing a few stones aside. Two pigs screamed and died. Yagami's fortress's roof wobbled and tipped over. Two birds later – the blue ones splitting and doing clean-up – he declared victory with the score at seven to four.

He swore Iori looked violent. "Arggh! Again!"

"You know we have to stop once we hit Dotonbori, right?"

"Until then, we continue! Come on, Kyo!"

Round thirteen was Iori's. Kyo didn't even know how that happened so fast.

Seven to five.

He lost round fourteen. People started grumbling around them. Usually, the riders on the train kept quiet. Behaved. This time, they just happened to get both him and Yagami on the same train heading for the same destination. He would've felt bad for them, if it wasn't for the fact that Yagami was making a strong comeback, insistent on beating his ass into the ground. He seemed to favor the red bastard, whose raucous cackling got on Kyo's nerves.

"Can't you quiet down?"

"None of your business!"

"Hey, Yagami," he said, making sure the other noticed his glare, "no need to be rude."

"Fuck!"

A few hard stares were directed at Iori. Kyo saw him ignore them, deliberately oblivious.

"You accepting my challenge or not?"

"Huh?" He looked down. There it was – another invite to a game by Yagami. Round fifteen. Sure, why not? He tapped the screen. Went in and met death by bombardment. That seemed to sweeten the other's mood. Iori looked positively happy, if that was the correct way to describe him. Somehow, Kyo never saw him as happy. Pleased and arrogant were more appropriate when it came to his rival. Happy was for people like…well, like Shingo.

He didn't need to think about his biggest fanboy right now.

Seven to six.

He had more important matters at hand. Yagami was catching up.

Were they going to tie again? Even in Angry Birds?

Challenge sent. Challenge accepted.

Round sixteen.

He looked at the time on his phone. They were going to arrive at Dotonbori soon. So this was their last round. Maybe. Unless he won and Yagami pushed for another to settle the score. Whether it was a case of nerves or he wasn't paying attention, he shot wide. The poor bird went sailing off screen. Iori burst out laughing. Kyo winced, seeing the open glares – sharp as knives – focused on the redhead. Once again, Yagami gave a showcase of "I don't give a fuck". His next two birds died pathetically and Iori issued his call to battle.

Round seventeen, which Yagami took.

Seven to seven.

Kyo met Iori's satisfied grin. Gripped his phone tightly. "What's wrong, Kyo? Getting scared?"

 _Says the guy who hid behind my couch and got drunk off his ass yelling about Godzilla._ "No. One more round, Yagami. Let's settle this."

Iori's grin was unsettling, or maybe it was because Kyo himself was rattled. "You know what to do."

Kyo almost punched the screen. "Come on, Yagami. Let's do this."

Final round. He stared at his phone with such concentration that he swore it would've burst into flames from the intensity. _Just need one lucky strike. Come on. I can do this._ He wound up the slingshot, nestled the yellow bird in place, and with a prayer to all the gaming gods out there, delivered his ultimate salvo against Yagami's keep. With a cry of glee – that _"Yahoooeee!"_ again – Yagami's castle went from standing to rubble. No survivors, no castle. Osaka Castle remained standing even longer than that – still existed, as a matter-of-fact.

He almost laughed. Iori stared down at his phone, nonplussed.

 _"What?"_

"Eight to seven, Yagami. Guess I win."

"That…Kusanagi, you fuck! That was –"

"Lucky? Guess so. Today just wasn't your day."

"You come back here and say that, you –"

"Dotonbori's here. Catch ya next time, Yagami. Try not to suck so much."

"Hey!" He was the first one out their compartment but Yagami's holler followed him. "Kusanagi! Come back here! We're not done yet!"

 _Next time, Yagami. Next time._


	7. Chap 7 - Nanomemes - Silent Hills: PT

So, Rin here leaving the opening comments for Nano's chapter (have her full blessings to do so). :)

Silent Hills – PT (Playable Trailer) experienced by Nano's Team Murder. Just a note that while we do have the fic collab in general labeled as 'Humor' that this one does not carry that tone and for good reason. Enjoy the read.

* * *

PT:

 _Watch out. The gap in the door…_

 _It's a separate reality._

 _The only me is me._

 _Are you sure the only you is you?_

…

Iori couldn't care less. This game could take its philosophical bullshit and just shove it. All he had to do was finish this thing without pulling off the VR headset - _Kusanagi had said the game was just some walking simulator_ \- and the asshole owed him 20 bucks.

He had planned to use the 20 bucks in the most asinine way possible, just to spite his rival. After all, that was all they did nowadays, now that they've stopping trying to murder each other… What would be the worst way to spend it?... _Maybe I'll just roll it up and smoke it?... nah, that's probably unhealthy._

Iori sighed and scratched the back of his head. The giant VR screen was strapped beneath the wireless headset, and the whole thing was pretty heavy. Although they were bulky, they were also noise cancelling, which was fantastic because he didn't want to listen to Chizuru threatening people over the phone.

 _I swear, that woman is always working. If she doesn't take time to relax, one day she'll either gonna go nuts or drop dead…_

… Was what they thought. Apparently, it was also the reason Kyo felt it was important for her to participate in this stupid PT game. Iori didn't know how this would constitute a relaxing pastime, but he didn't mind… _Is it fun to watch someone else play a videogame?… well, whatever._

As if on cue, the cryptic words faded from the screen and Iori's character _'woke up'_ on the floor of some dungeon. The screen made a peculiar blinking animation, and the first thing he saw was the cold, beautifully rendered, concrete floor. The graphic fidelity was amazing, and Iori made an impressed noise.

 _Ew. Cockroach._

Unfortunately for him, the insect that scurried into the darkness as he stood was also beautifully rendered and looked just as nasty and disgusting as real ones. Iori noted that these bugs seemed to be fused end to end. Interesting, but not particularly meaningful.

He looked around the barren concrete room. The back corners were obscured in heavy - oppressive looking shadows. Directly ahead was a wooden door that looked like it belonged in some residential property. A sickly pale fluorescent tube-light was positioned above it and shone a surgical light upon it.

 _Alright, up! Come on dude. Let's go._

The character slowly climbed to its feet and began lumbering toward the door. Iori noted his lack of weapon and lack of running or jumping buttons. Perhaps the game really was a walking simulator after all…

 _Well, I guess I'll be done fast then. How hard is to press forward? Kyo, your money is mine._

He rolled his shoulders, got comfy on the floor, and headed for the doorway.

 _Let's get this over with._

* * *

Loop 1:

Kyo Kusanagi propped his feet up on one of Chizuru's ornate ottomans and grinned at the owner of the house. She was sitting beside him dressed in slippers and lounge clothes - which somehow still looked professional - and looking grumpily down at her phone. She had been yelling at someone in English and Kyo neither knew nor cared what it was about. His primary objective was to get his rival strapped to a VR headset playing the scariest game in recent memory.

Of course, Iori didn't know this was a scary game. Kyo had refrained from giving him any details at all. He sat on the floor quite obliviously, holding the game controller and looking around. Kyo and Chizuru could see what he was looking at on the plasma TV.

"Chiz, he's starting!"

"Uh-huh… "

Chizuru had pulled out a binder of documents and had gotten on the phone again. Kyo rolled his eyes; he couldn't complain. It was Chizuru's day off, and she had let him use her house for his little VR plot. It seemed like she was actually trying to spend some time with them, despite her busy schedule (her vacation days seemed to be the same as her business days except that she didn't wear a suit). The gesture was unexpected, but much appreciated. When Iori came to Japan, he stayed with his clan. Although they were both clan leaders, and got along quite fine, there was still a great deal of animosity among… which Kyo affectionately referred to as their _'in-laws'._

As a result, there really wasn't anywhere they could hang out without igniting some sort of clan conflict. If Chizuru hadn't opened her house, Kyo would've had to fly down to SouthTown with all his VR gear and hope Iori had replaced his plasma TV from the last time he'd stolen it.

Chizuru stood up and began pacing behind the couch as she held a conference call. Kyo shrugged and turned his attention back onto the screen. He had bet Iori 20 dollars that he couldn't get through the game without taking off the headset, and as always, Iori took the bait. The guy didn't know what he was getting into…

* * *

 _So I can walk… and zoom… ?_

He had just walked through the residential wooden door and into a… rather normal looking hallway. It was clean, the walls were beige, there were some paintings on the walls, and the mouldings looked pretty nice… the rendering was excellent. Iori briefly wondered if this was simply a real-estate showing in digital form.

 _They wouldn't be using such ghastly lighting choices then…_

He really was quite confused as to why Kyo wanted him to play this thing so badly. Maybe it was a really difficult puzzle? Iori had no idea. At his prompting, his character lumbered down the hallway toward the window. His footsteps were loud and echoed in the hallways. There was no music. Everything was quiet.

Somehow, the silence was discomforting - but he shoved the thought away. It was a graphics showcasing for pete's sake!

A scratchy radio voice interrupted his thoughts.

" _-murder of the wife and her two children by their husband and father. The father purchased the rifle used in the crime at his local gunstore two days earlier. This brutal killing took place while the family was gathered at home on a Sunday afternoon."_

… ok, not a graphics showcase...

He continued down the hallway toward the window. The scratchy radio conversation continued as he walked down the corridor. Outside was dark, and the lights somehow weren't comforting. The darkness was unsettling, the light was unsettling, the silence was unsettling and so was the noise. Iori briefly considered pulling off his headset to ask what the hell he was playing, but quickly tossed that thought as well. He wasn't about to lose a bet within thirty seconds of starting.

" _-shot his wife as she was cleaning up the kitchen after lunch. When his ten-year-old son came to investigate the commotion, the father shot him, too. His six-year-old daughter had the good sense to hide in the bathroom, but reports suggest he lured her out by telling her it was just a game."_

The hallway was L-shaped and Iori hesitated before turning the corner. He shook his head, berated himself, and plowed forward. Why did he hesitate? There was nothing to be afraid of. This was probably some mystery game, and Kyo was trying to see if he could figure it out. Screw him, he was going to solve this thing if it was the last thing he did.

" _The girl was found shot once in the chest from point-blank range. The mother, who he shot in the stomach, was pregnant at the time. Police arri-"_

He passed beneath a chandelier and quickly tested the front door. Locked. He immediately went for the door at the end of the hallway, catching a glimpse of a black-and-white family portrait as he went. He opened the door and rushed down the steps to leave the unsettling hallway. He would come back to this part of the house later on. Right now he would just orient himself with the game's maps...

 _Down the stairs, let's see the rest of this place._

There was another door at the foot of the steps leading into the… basement? Whatever. He just wanted out. He attributed his… uneasiness with the staticky crackling of the radio. It was an unsettling sound. Once there was some ambient music he'd be fine.

 _Maybe there are more clues in the base-_

There was the thud as the basement door closed behind him.

He inhaled sharply and squeezed the controller.

 _Fuck._

Because before him lay the same, unsettling hallway…

* * *

Loop 2:

The same hallway, same lighting… nothing seemed to have changed. Iori hesitated, wondering if he had gone the wrong direction. He turned back and tried to backtrack, but the door was locked.

 _Again…?_

The clock read 23:59. A minute from midnight… This time the radio wasn't going. It was silent as death. The only noise he could hear was the sound of his own footsteps.

He rounded the corner and started down the hall, moving as quickly as his character let him - which really wasn't very fast. Maybe he needed to do the loop a few times before the game let him out to explore the rest of the house? Or maybe the game glitched? He wasn't sure.

 _Three doors in the hallway, the basement door, the front door, and the bathroo-_

*KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK*

"Oh Fuck!"

He jolted and kicked something in Chizuru's living room. Kyo had probably laughed at him, but at this point Iori wasn't thinking about anything other then what was on his screen. He didn't stop moving, he kept the joystick pressed firmly forward. He didn't want to see what had knocked on the other side of the door. Hell, he was out of here… _Basement here we come._

He wrenched open the door.

And found himself back at the beginning of the corridor.

Something dreadful was beginning to pool in his stomach.

* * *

Loop 3:

 _Bugs everywhere…_

He didn't remember if they had been there before, but he was only now seeing them. Some of them were fused together just like in that concrete room in the beginning of the game. There was no music this time either. No radio static… but there was loud banging from the bathroom door.

Iori felt the controller slipping from his hands… _my palms are fucking sweating… holy shit._

He had to walk past that door. Would something pop out at him?

 _Just… It's a fucking game, Yagami. Calm your tits… just… go!_

He went.

Rushed around the corner and past the door. The chandelier was swinging on its chain and emitted an ungodly squeaking. He didn't stay long enough for it to get annoying. He was out. Down the steps. Out the door.

He caught a glimpse of text scrawled above the basement as he rushed out, reading - _'Forgive me, Lisa. There's a monster inside of me'_

 _Who's Lisa? Whatever…_

Through the door. Through the next rendition of the same L-shaped hallway…

 _Next loop._

He knew the next one would be worse, but hell if he was going to stay here. He'd go down and down until he reached the end.

He just hoped the end was in sight.

* * *

Loop 4:

Kyo reclined on the couch and propped his head up with one arm to watch the large TV screen. Up ahead was one of the first jumpscares and Kyo was looking forward to his rival's reaction. Iori was strapped into his VR headset, and seemed to be completely taken by the game's atmosphere. He had gone in blind, not even knowing this was a horror game. He had no time to mentally prepare himself for the scares, and his apprehension was almost palpable.

Kyo was actually feeling a little bit bad for him, but it was pretty entertaining watching Iori Yagami sweat a bit. Honestly there weren't many things they - as sacred treasures - were scared of. Of course there were those abstract concepts. They feared _'losing their families', 'being cast out of society'_ etc… but when it came to physical threats, really… there was no force in the world they couldn't fight.

So Kyo found it immensely amusing when Iori yelped and almost jumped out of his skin when the ghost lady knocked on the door.

 _Hehe, he's gonna go bonkers when he sees Lisa… Shit, I should record this._

* * *

 _So the text on the door… I must have done something to Lisa, right? Since I'm apologizing?_

Iori frowned as he entered the next loop and made his way down the hallway. It was deadly silent again, just the loud pounding of his footsteps on the wooden floor. Somehow it made him feel vulnerable. Whatever was here was malicious, and could easily find him. In this looping L-shaped corridor, there was nowhere to run, nowhere to hide.

He rounded the corner and paused.

Up ahead was the swinging chandelier, it squeaked on its hinge and seemed to be driven by an unseen force. That was 'normal'.

What was abnormal was… the basement door was wide open. Even from the end of the hall, Iori could see the secondary door leading into the next loop.

Why was it open? Honestly he didn't care. He mashed the forward button in an attempt to rush at it - hopefully to skip whatever horrors this loop had to show him…

 _Gogogo- shit! Shit!_

As he drew nearer, the door swung on its hinge and closed tight. He froze.

 _Shit… there's something behind me… oh God… I know it…_

Iori didn't turn. He knew the door would be locked, but tried anyways. He didn't want to turn around. Whatever had closed that door was waiting to eat him alive… but what choice did he have?

 _Ok… deep breath… just a jumpscare, ok? That's how these games work… 1… 2… 3-_

He squinted through his VR headset, expecting a zombie or something… but…

But his apprehension was for naught. There was nothing behind him, yet he couldn't relax. That oppressive silence remained. His loud clumsy footsteps rang out into the malevolent corridor. What did this character do to deserve this? This wasn't any old haunted house… it was a tailor made hell.

 _Now what? Maybe the other door is open?_

Iori swallowed his fear down and walked. He kept rapt attention to his surroundings - expecting something to pop out at him from every shadow. He was on razor's edge. Something was coming, and he knew it, and he was dreading it, but he couldn't escape it.

*creeeak*

 _Shit._

The bathroom door fell ajar, spilling cockroaches all over the floor. The same bathroom door which had been banged on violently by the evil spirit just last loop. Hell, Iori didn't want to go in there, but there were no other options.

He closed his eyes, steeled himself, and moved. He swore the stress was grating on him. He needed to relax. _This is just a game. Kusanagi is sitting there filming me with that stupid grin on his face. Chiz is probably making phone calls again. Just calm down an- what?_

A baby.

Crying.

Crying from inside the bathroom.

 _Why is there a baby in the bathroom?_

Iori's apprehension was momentarily overcome by curiosity as he tried to open the door. When it didn't move, he peered into the gap, trying to make out the shapes within. It was dark, but if he concentrated he could make out… _a sink… and a mir-_

*SLAM*

"FUCKING HELL! HOLY SHIT!"

He dropped his controller and kicked something else in Chizuru's living room. His big toe was starting to hurt, but right now that was the least of his worries. His heart was beating at a million miles per hour. He dug his fingers into the carpet and just held on. Every muscle in his body was tense.

 _The lady! Shit! There was a lady!_

"... dammit what the fuck..."

 _She grabbed the door and slammed it shut. She was all messed up… had these waterstains coming from her mouth…_

Iori hissed and snatched the controller back up. He had seen the ghost - maybe for just a split second, but he had seen it. He couldn't deny that he was truly scared of her at this point. She owned this place. She controlled this malevolent loop, and he was at her mercy… he was helpless.

...

He was getting out. He didn't care what was in the next loop. He just needed to get out of this one.

He made a beeline for the door.

* * *

Loop 5:

Same thing.

Same hallway.

Same loop.

But now, there was a death rattle in the air. The sound of someone choking - no, being strangled - no, being drowned. It sounded a lot like someone trying to cry with a slit throat. Iori had more experience in that department than with, likely, anyone else on earth. It was punctuated with static as if they were dying over the phone. Of all the sounds this game had to offer, this was by far the worst.

It was unsettling by itself, but for Iori, it brought forth a whole host of memories. Memories of which he wanted nothing more than to scrub from his brain.

At this point, the extra stress was simply overkill. He felt like he was drowning. He took a deep breath and battled his guilty conscience away. It bothered him enough at night; he didn't need it during the day as well. Too bad Riot was taking a nap; otherwise he might've kept his host company - perhaps offered some commentary to take the edge off.

Sadly, there was no respite.

From the moment he rounded the corner, he froze.

There was a figure standing there in the lamplight of the wildly swinging chandelier. It was a woman in a long nightgown. She stood crooked. Her head fell to one side as if her neck was broken. She emitted the choking death rattle.

 _Fuck Fuck Fuck Fuck… Fuck!_

He turned tail and ran for the door he came from. He knew it'd be locked, but what else was there to do? Walk toward her? Is that what this game wanted from him? Hell no! At least he had to try the door - perhaps it would offer an escape.

…

But there was no escape.

It was something that Iori was rapidly learning.

He returned to the corridor and looked down. The lady was there, face obscured by the swinging shadows, staring at him.

There was only one way to go.

He needed to move forward, he needed to descend the stairs to the basement door. He had to escape to the next loop. Down was the only way out.

 _Down. down. down._

He rushed her. The light flickered off and she disappeared, then cockroaches burst from where she stood as the lights turned back on. Iori didn't take the time to appreciate the scare. He was running straight through. Straight for the basement. Straight down.

 _Straight down to hell._

* * *

Loop 6:

Next loop.

This time the bathroom door was wide open. Inside was pitch black. A flashlight lay there on the floor, Iori could see it from where he stood looking in from outside the door.

He didn't really want to go in, but the door at the end of the hall was locked. This damned hallway was toying with him. He had to do what it wanted, or else he'd never get out.

So he steeled his heart and entered, rushing for the light.

Behind him, he heard a creak.

He knew he was locked in.

…

He didn't expect anything less from this hellish place.

Swinging lights, doors opening and shutting on their own, the radio playing whatever it wanted, ghosts showing up… _typical horror flick stuff… just relax. Holy shit, just stop! It's all fake._

He whispered encouragements to himself under his breath, but none of them seemed to help. He couldn't shake that feeling of dread. That exhausting, oppressive terror that had dragged on him for the past… what, ten minutes? It felt like an hour already.

 _There's nothing else they can do, aright? Just jumpscares with the zombie lady, and slamming doors. It's nothing… nothing! Get your shit together Yagami._

The character stood up and shone the flashlight against the wall, casting a bright white dot against the darkness. More of those damn cockroaches scurried from the light. The place was silent. No more death rattle, no more radio, just the sound of his feet on the tiles.

He tried the door to no avail, so turned to look around.

To his left was a bathtub filled with stagnant water. To his right was a scratched out mirror and-...

 _What the hell? What's in the sink?_

Iori directed himself over to look down into the dirty stained sink.

 _God… god fucking dammit._

A fetus.

He could see its small heart pumping through its misshapen, underdeveloped chest. Its mouth was open, as if struggling for breath. It moved about weakly in the sink.

 _Who the fuck thought of this… this fucked up shit…_

It began to cry.

…

He heard labored footsteps round the corner outside. He turned to look at the door almost incredulously. Was the ghost lady back? Already? He couldn't get even a moment of rest? Not a single second to close his eyes and try to sort himself. How unrelenting. Hellish. He was almost in a daze. He didn't even know what to think.

She began rattling the door. He watched the handle turn back and forth as she tried to gain entry and comfort her child. But the door was locked tight. She couldn't get in. He couldn't get out. After a long moment, she left. Iori stared at the door, speechless and shaking. Thoughts flew about his head.

 _A fetus… the woman… shot in the stomach…_

The door creaked open.

 _Oh god… It was Lisa's baby. She was killed by her husband. She was the woman the radio broadcast was talking about._

He stepped out and walked toward the exit.

Somehow he was tired.

He descended the steps and looked up at the writing above the basement door. He stopped to mouth the words.

"Forgive me, Lisa. There's a monster inside me."

 _..._

 _Forgive me…_

 _no…_

He drew a sharp breath and squeezed his eyes shut.

… _I fucking did this. My character killed his family._

He walked toward the door and entered it.

 _I'm playing a murderer experiencing his hell._

…

 _His hell?_

For some reason, he wanted to cry.

* * *

Loop 7:

Iori Yagami was on a razor's edge, and that was fantastic. He didn't know what was coming for him loop 7, but Kyo could already see it. That extra set of footsteps, the shadow cast against the wall… he had planned this entire event for this very moment. He had spent a significant amount of time trying to pin his phone upright between the lamp and a book, in order that it could record the fruits of his nefarious plot.

 _Alright, it's coming up._

He crept down to crouch behind his rival, and waited for his cue.

 _Good thing Chiz isn't here… hehe…_

* * *

 _Shit, I killed my family, that's what all this is about. That's why I'm even here… this is my house… that kid is mine, Lisa's my wife…_

The footsteps rang loudly out against the wooden floors. It was silent this loop, and all the lights had turned off. The only light source was the character's flashlight which illuminated a cold circular patch on the far wall. He noticed an abnormality in his footsteps as he walked.

 _And she's haunting me. She's trying to get me, to show me hell. Tell me what I did… God…_

*Thud-thud… Thud-thud… Thud-thud…*

 _Huh?_

Iori focused on his surroundings and noticed his shadow was casting against the wall… but-

 _Wait, I'm holding the only light source… did the publishers mess up? Maybe there's another flashlight behind me-_

He turned.

A white, waterstained face knocked into his.

 _Lisa!_

The silence was abruptly broken by the rattling, drowned cry. The cacophony of a camera being knocked into mixed with radio static and filled his earphones. He hollered as he was dragged backwards to the ground as Lisa attacked him. Hard fingernails dug into his side, and something wrapped around his chest and squeezed.

"AHHH! SHIITT HOLY FUCK!"

He kicked and screamed, and fought but he couldn't break free. She had him from behind, and was just too stron-

"Hehehehe…"

…

The commotion had knocked his headset loose, and a familiar, obnoxious laughter rang in his ears. He gritted his teeth.

… _Kusanagi._

* * *

"Hehe, damn dude, you scream like a girl, I swear."

Kyo grinned at his rival, who had angrily shoved him away and was currently extricating himself from his complicated headgear. He had been completely terrified, and frankly Kyo found it hilarious. Iori seemed less than happy, but that was expected. He had lost the bet after all.

"Fuck you, Kusanagi."

Kyo was having too much fun to notice the strange tone in his rival's voice. He had stood up to demand payment from the red-haired man.

"Hey man, don't be a sore loser. Pay up! Hehe… I could literally see you sweating bullets. It was the best- _Aack! Dude! What the hell-_ "

Iori, once he had taken everything off, whirled to grab him by the front of the shirt. There was a snarl etched into his features - but different from normal. It was an expression Kyo hadn't seen in a long time. He looked like he was about to cry. He wasn't screaming, but his voice was deadly serious.

"Kusanagi, what the fuck!? Why did you do that?!"

 _Oh, come on. Jeez, this guy is such a bitch._

"What? Hey, it's just a game. Suck it up and stop being a whiny bit-Hah! Man, are you crying? You're crying aren't y-"

Kyo instinctively braced himself as he was hurled, cackling, into the couch. He didn't expect Iori to react so strongly, but it didn't ruffle him too much. After all, he had achieved his goal, and had the whole thing on tape. He lowered his guard momentarily to throw a verbal jab at his opponent, but stopped short.

"You should've seen your fa-..."

He stopped because Iori was _crying._

Crying mad.

Screaming mad.

"Why did you do that?! WHY!"

 _What the fuck?_

"It's just a pran-"

Iori looked like he was about to go ballistic again.

"He was a fucking murderer, Kusanagi! You knew that! You knew that didn't you?! The guy killed his own family! You knew what he did!"

 _What?_

"Uh… yeah? I mean… _dude what's wrong with you?_ "

Kyo looked up at the other man, utterly confused. Iori wore the expression of pure rage on his face. Rage compounded with bitterness. It was the serious kind of expression. Something was wrong. Kyo furrowed his brow.

"... What are you talking about? It's just a stupid horror ga-"

Iori hissed at him, interrupting.

"That game was about a man who murdered his family. He killed them!…You knew the game was about his hell! You made me play it! Play as his punishment!… you knew that! You _knew_ it!"

Kyo answered warily.

"... yeah, I mean, it's a horror game. I don't know what you expected."

Iori responded in a quiet voice. He stood there in the center of the room, angry tears dripping from his chin. It wasn't how Kyo was used to seeing him, and it was throwing him off. He didn't quite know how to react to this. Iori didn't cry that much.

"I expected you wouldn't do something so _fucking_ stupid for a cheap laugh."

Kyo frowned at him. Iori's voice grew louder as he continued. He seemed just as upset as before.

"I'm a fucking murderer, Kusanagi, and I've done a hell of a lot worse than the guy in this game. You know that - you know it better than anyone."

 _Oh._

"So _why the hell_ would you make me play that?! Are you trying to torture me? Torture me for real? Do you know-" He was snarling now. "Have you _any idea_ what I would give to not think about the people I've killed. I'd give _everything! Everything!"_

 _Oh Shit._

"They haunt my fucking dreams, Kusanagi! You know that too, you fuck! You utter piece of shit! I came here to fucking hang out and not think about my fucking nightmares, and you pull this kind of bullshit?! Damn you!"

 _Oh fuck._

"I fucking think about hell sometimes. It fucking scares me. Every person I've hurt is gonna be there to do _that_ to me? Is that what you're saying? Is that what you wanna tell me Kusanagi?! Is that where you get your kicks? Fuck you! Fuck you and your stupid fucking game!"

Silence.

Kyo sat, frozen in place on the couch. He just wanted the jumpscares. He legitimately hadn't thought about the ramifications of the story, and how they might ignite his rival's trauma. Iori had turned away, his face was shadowed beneath his hair, but his cheeks were still slick. He had pinned the crook of his elbow over his eyes to staunch the flow of tears.

"... Yagami. I didn't think-"

Iori released a dry laugh, cutting him off.

"I know you didn't. You never do."

"..."

Kyo opened his mouth, then closed it again. He didn't have a retort - and even if he did, it would be best to stay silent anyways.

Iori removed his elbow from his face and raked his hand through his hair. His eyes were hard and his expression had returned to how it normally was. He fixed Kyo with a cold stare. He spoke as if they were strangers.

"I'm leaving."

"... hey, I'm sor-"

"Tell Kagura not to call me for a while."

"Yeah... alright."


End file.
